


standing still in a moving scene

by ktsushade



Category: BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Established Relationship, F/F, Long-Distance Relationship, Music, a little dash of drama, okay more like a lot of drama
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-08-08
Packaged: 2019-10-02 11:55:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 43,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17263757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ktsushade/pseuds/ktsushade
Summary: Hikawa Sayo has entered university. She's hours away from home, in a town she's never been before. Here is where she finds exactly what she's been searching for.





	1. Chapter 1

When Hikawa Sayo received the dreaded page asking for her three university choices in her final year of high school, she didn’t hesitate to write any down. All of them were related to music, her main interest being in guitar. She practiced a bit on her own and wanted to explore more with it, and while there were tons of schools in the area specializing in all kinds of instruments, Sayo decided to go with schools that had something in common with each other.  
  
Each one was hours away, with her top choice being all the way in Kyoto. She hadn’t mentioned it to anyone, and kept it a tightly kept secret from her nosy twin sister until the moment the acceptance letter came in the mail. By then, as her parents stared at her in shock and her sister completely confused by the realization Sayo was moving far away, it was already too late.  
  
Thus, within the year she was packed and moving on from the large bustling city of Tokyo to the more calm and quiet Kyoto.  
  
She watched as the scenery changed from tall buildings and neon lights to the packed highways, and eventually flatten into greenery. Occasionally she would spot the random elderly taking a walk with their grandchildren, or working in rice paddy fields. Her phone buzzed with messages from her parents wishing her the best, while those from her sister were ignored but silenced altogether.  
  
Sighing, nineteen-year-old Sayo rested her head against the window, looking forward to her new life.

* * *

The campus of Kyoto Seika University was large but easy to navigate based on the map she found online, but the bullet train had been packed with new students, making it easy to blend in and follow the crowd to the dorms where the staff quickly got her information and handed her the key to her room. It had been a little more costly but Sayo wanted her own single dorm room, not only making it convenient to practice in, but gave her the privacy she needed.  
  
“We do checkups every night at around eleven, so make sure you’re here by then,” the dorm advisor told the group Sayo was in. “We also check to make sure the rooms are in order so try and keep things clean - make it easy on everyone.”  
  
It wasn’t the biggest thing in the world but she had a desk, a single bed, a mini fridge and room to spare for extra luggage. Plus she was at a decent floor that gave her a pretty good view of the greenery surrounding the campus. Sayo couldn’t complain.  
  
Just as she was about to leave to find her classes and tour what she could, her phone began to ring in her pocket. The recognizable ringtone made her breath stop, but Sayo still took it out and answered quietly.  
  
“Hi Sayo,” came a cute voice Sayo didn’t know her ears were craving. “Are you still on the train?”  
  
“No.” Her short response made her want to bite her tongue, but Sayo was never a chatterbox and they both knew it. Easing herself onto her bed, she decided to rest for a while.  
  
“Oh…” A pause. Then: “I miss you already.”  
  
Hazawa Tsugumi was a girl Sayo met in high school. A younger, brighter girl who always had her head held high and had very little negative bones in her body. They didn’t go to the same school but met through her sister’s student council work. Eventually they found themselves hanging out by themselves all the time, and (to Sayo’s luck) began dating one day when Tsugumi took the initiative to ask her out. The news of Sayo moving away was hard at first, especially when Tsugumi was in her final year of high school, but she took it head on and was supportive, making her the final piece for Sayo to make her decision.  
  
“I miss you,” Sayo said. She did.  
  
She heard Tsugumi sigh, but with a positive tone to it. “What’s the campus like?” she asked.  
  
“I’m not sure yet. I only just got into my dorm, but I can say it’s very lush.”  
  
“Ah, that’s nice! It must be very beautiful. I’d love to visit Kyoto.”  
  
The thought running through Sayo’s head was put to rest the moment it was conceived.  
  
Sayo stood, deciding now would be a good time to get a good look at all the buildings. The internet only had so many photos and limited information, it was nothing like actually walking around in it.  
  
“Do you have a roommate?” Sayo wanted to chuckle at the nervous tone in her girlfriend’s voice.  
  
“No,” was her confident answer. “I chose a single room.”  
  
She could have sworn she heard Tsugumi let out a deep sigh of relief but chose not to bring it up.  
  
“Tsugumi. I have to get going now,” Sayo said. It did hurt to have to end the conversation, but she didn’t want to be rude and walk around campus while on the phone. She also didn’t want anyone else to listen in on what was supposed to be private. “Shall I call you later tonight?”  
  
“Yeah… yeah! Um, I’ll let you know when I come home from my shift today. Make sure you eat something, too!”  
  
Sayo smiled as she listened. Tsugumi was a giant worrywart, but it helped remind Sayo that taking care of herself was important. She appreciated it. “Then I shall talk to you soon. I love you.”  
  
It sounded like Tsugumi gasped before a soft “I love you too” came from the receiver and the call ended.  
  
Slipping her key into her pocket, she left her room and locked it, making sure it was secure before heading off.

As the year just ended, there weren’t very many students milling about aside from those like Sayo who were brand new and getting themselves familiar with the campus they’d be walking across for the next four years. It was clean and large, but most of all quiet. Even if there were large crowds Sayo couldn’t imagine the noise being more than a low hum. Being surrounded by nature and virtually isolated from the public made it much more calm.  
  
Sayo’s dorm wasn’t too far from the main building. There were a few more dorms around her (one for males and other for international students) and a few minutes away came the actual buildings with classrooms in them. Sayo ignored all the ones that she didn’t need to know like the pottery and other art halls, coming to a clearing where a large set of stairs sat before a small pond. There were a few students hanging out, one of them holding a sketch pad in his lap.  
  
“Yo!” he called out to her, holding out his pen in a greeting. Sayo simply nodded, getting out of his way and moving on to the information center. There wasn’t much to see. A student store was on the first floor along with the faculty offices, and a lounge was on the second with tables and desks and other PCs available to use for studying. Sayo quickly left, having no reason to stick around.    
  
The music department was far from the dorms, but Sayo found it easy to find. It was in between the information center and the gymnasium, a thin building with three floors: the first floor lobby for fashion students’ classes, the second for music and the third was a meeting hall. Sayo ignored everything and focused on looking for the classroom she would be in.  
  
While the university was mostly known for its manga program, it’s music department was something that personally spoke to Sayo when she read up on it online. Rather than jumping into a class where she simply learned guitar, it was a 4-year process of understanding music itself. Constructing rhythms and decomposing them to their base forms, understanding why they worked and how they could be better. Unlike her sister who had learned easily through practice, Sayo learned through logic and numbers. She had an interest in guitar for sure, but she wanted to thoroughly understand her instrument.  
  
It was much easier explaining that reasoning to Tsugumi, who took her uncertain words and summarized them in the easiest way possible. Her parents had listened and simply stared long and hard at her before reluctantly agreeing, but Sayo could tell they had no clue what it was she was looking for.  
  
“Oh? You a new student?”  
  
Sayo looked up from her schedule on her phone and made eye contact with another student. Her shiny brown hair was incredibly long and full, pulled back into a fluffy ponytail. Her fashion sense was more on the feminine side, although it was easily noticeable how much more tasteful she was in her attire than Sayo - who wore overalls that had seen better days and a plain white t-shirt.  
  
“I start in a few days, yes,” she decided to answer.  
  
“Cool!” the girl said. “Same here. I got lost a couple of times, so I hope I can make it to class on time…”  
  
Sayo raised an eyebrow. She didn’t particularly care about what she was saying, but it would have been rude to ignore her and walk away. She also wondered how the other girl could get lost when everything was clear as day on the map.  
  
“I’m Imai Lisa by the way!” she said, taking notice to Sayo’s disinterest. She still smiled despite the lack of participation. “Hope to see you around!” With that, she dashed around Sayo and disappeared into the elevator, leaving her in the empty hallway in confusion.  
  
“Hikawa Sayo…”  
  
The rest of the campus was pretty basic. Across from the music hall was a large building that had the cafeteria, a convenience store and cafe to relax in. On the west side of the campus was the gym and sports field, and the rest were classes she didn’t need or had no interest in.  
  
By the time Sayo left the library with her new library pass, her stomach let out a loud cry, leaving her standing on the stairs with a blush and praying nobody was around to have heard it. Counting the change in her coin purse, Sayo headed for the cafeteria.  
  
The lineup of food wasn’t too bad, but Sayo cringed at the chunks of carrots sitting in the pot of curry at the counter. Still, it was only a few hundred yen and with a small carton of juice would satisfy her until morning.  
  
She made a plan for the next to day to pick up her textbooks, some notebooks and other supplies she left back at home in favor of packing light. From there she would visit the classrooms for her general studies like math, and if she had time after lunch she’d scope out the areas outside of the university.  
  
As she headed back to her dorm, Sayo couldn’t help but think the empty campus at sunset was breathtaking. All the buildings were white and has large glass panels for windows, making everything glow a bright orange. Even if she could just barely see, Sayo held up her phone for a photo, wanting to share the view with Tsugumi when she returned to her room.  
  
She entered the dorm and showed her key to the girl at the desk before entering the elevator, only for it to stop halfway from closing when she saw the girl (Lisa was her name?) run into it just in time, hitting the eighth floor button.  
  
“Whew!” Lisa let out a big breath and leaned against the back of the elevator. “Sorry, sorry! I was running a little late!”  
  
Sayo raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything, not really feeling up to chatting with someone she didn’t know. At first she thought Lisa had been talking to her until she heard a voice coming from within her large mane of hair, and then it was very clear the girl had earbuds in and was talking to someone on the phone. Suddenly Sayo was grateful she wasn’t a sociable person.  
  
“I’m heading up to the room now, don’t worry~ Jeez you’d think you were in elementary school… yes I have the schedules! You and I only have one class together though, since we’re both majoring in different things.”  
  
Sayo was getting annoyed at the conversation. There was a reason she chose to speak on the phone in her own room and not around others. And if she did, at least she did with a hushed voice.  
  
Thankful the elevator finally stopped at her floor, she hurriedly got off and made a beeline for her dorm without looking back at Lisa. Shutting it slowly, she let out a breath and took off her shoes, finally letting her feet relax.  
  
If she wanted to bathe she needed to go to the community bath on her floor, but before she did Sayo checked her phone for any new messages and smiled when she saw a few from Tsugumi. One was a photo of herself in the new cafe uniform, and the other was informing her that she was available.  
  
A quick dial and Sayo was laying on her bed again, this time in no rush. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was writing a one-shot about Tsugu visiting Sayo at a university far from home and it started getting really detailed and I was getting really into it when I thought "why not make this a multi-chapter thing?" and so here we are. 
> 
> Kyoto Seika is a real university. I find it extremely beautiful, which is why I chose it as the setting lol.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Sayo was off to get all her textbooks listed in the multiple syllabuses sent to her new school email. It was probably a lot easier to simply get them online, but Sayo preferred having a hard copy of anything of importance.

The three large books in her bag threatened to completely tear the thing apart, and the two in her arms did nothing to help the struggle of having to lug it all the way back to her dorm on the other side of the campus. Unlike the day before, she saw a few more students hanging around, but all of them were simply chatting with friends, having lunch and looking at their phones.

And one of them was a familiar face. Imai Lisa immediately spotted her descending the stairs at the pond, shouting at her with a large wave. “He-y!”

Sayo ignored her. Not only could she not stop and wave back due to her current limitations, but she also wanted to get to her dorm and deposit all of the textbooks there before even thinking of stopping for a chat. It seemed Lisa didn’t share the same sentiment, as she left the two girls she was talking to and rushed over to Sayo’s side.

“Want some help?” she asked, looking at Sayo’s shaky arms. It was pretty embarrassing to have someone watch as she struggled. In the end she nodded, ignoring her pride to give her body some kind of relief. Lisa grunted as the textbooks piled into her arms, while Sayo took two from her bag, her shoulder immediately thanking her.

“Thank you,” she said quietly. Lisa simply smiled.

“So! What brings you here?” she asked, letting Sayo take the lead. The walk up to the dorms was fairly short, but for Sayo who didn’t particularly care for small talk with a stranger, it felt like forever. Lisa was good at being unable to read the air. “You’ve got an interest in music, are you looking to be a composer?”

Sayo sighed in her head, but allowed herself to be swept into conversation. “No. I’ve been playing guitar for about two years now. That's what I'm focusing on.” She ignored the way Lisa’s eyes began to glow in excitement and stared at the window of her room. Just a little bit more.

“Guitar! That’s so cool! I’m actually pretty… er, well not _very_ good but pretty decent at the bass!” Lisa said with a nervous laugh. The entrance to their dorm opened, letting a cool breeze brush their skin. Sayo had come in and out of the building so often those at the front desk had no need for identification anymore - not that she would have been able to bring out her ID for them anyway. “We should play together sometime.”

That almost made her stop midstep. She didn’t know what to say to that. Lisa wasn’t a friend or acquaintance, she didn’t even know Sayo’s name yet. But if they were to be in the same class following the same career path, maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad to get to know her. Tsugumi was always encouraging her to make more friends, and while Sayo secretly did wish she could, she never really made an effort.

“If we have time,” she decided to say. The whole point of moving away was for Sayo to find change, wasn’t it? If she stayed just as she was, there would be little meaning to it. “So long as you’re not a beginner, that is.”

Lisa bumped her shoulder with a laugh, using her elbow to hit the 6th floor button in the elevator. So she remembered. “Of course not! I’ve been trying to play since I was little after all,” she defended.

“ _Trying_?” Sayo repeated. Lisa made an unpleasant sound in her throat between a laugh and surprise. Something about it told Sayo not to ask for details.

Letting out a loud sigh, Lisa nodded as they got off the elevator. “Yes, trying. I practice a lot, don’t get me wrong - it’s just… how do I put it?” she stopped as Sayo fished for her room key to unlock the door and allowed herself in after her. “I guess you could say I need to brush up on my skills..?”

“So you haven’t been practicing lately.” Sayo had to admit she hadn’t thought of touching her guitar either, but those words never left her mouth. Lisa let out a grumble, giving Sayo her books to put in a neat line on her desk.

She shook her arms before finally getting a look at the room. With two people in it, Sayo could finally feel how small her room was, but it seemed Lisa wasn’t thinking that at all with the way her mouth fell open. “You have your own room!” she exclaimed, making Sayo wince. The walls were nearly nonexistent with how thin they were. All through the night she could hear her neighbor talking on the phone, laughing and moving her things around.

“Yes. It’s quite small, but optimal if I want to study,” she said. Lisa hummed before crossing her arms in thought, taking a moment to think.

“How much?”

“Almost double the shared rooms.”

“...I’m glad I have a roommate.”

They left the dorms with Lisa’s invitation to lunch. Seeing as Sayo hadn’t had anything to eat aside from a small coffee in the dorm lobby, she didn’t hesitate to accept. She was getting used to the campus already, recognizing buildings by name and what classrooms they had in them. Some were lost to her as they weren’t relevant, and others she never saw anyway and were forgotten.

Curry was the special of the day again, but Sayo had no reason to complain. She remembered Tsugumi bringing her leftover curry for lunch one day and it flew to the top of her list of favorite foods. Lisa chose the same after seeing the stars in Sayo’s eyes.

“Are you thinking of joining any clubs?” Lisa asked, holding up a light yellow paper they saw tacked onto cork boards across campus. It had a list of all clubs in the school with the most popular being sports. Sayo wasn’t interested in them, and scanned the rest of the list for something worth looking into. They weren’t in high school anymore, she wanted to point out, but it would be nice to get out and do something when she didn’t have regular classes going on. Staying holed up in her room all day wasn’t healthy.

“Maybe… _acoustic fellows_ ? Is that a band…?” Sayo raised an eyebrow. It was an odd name, but she knew the English word _acoustic_ had something to do with music. There wasn’t any information except where to sign up, so she kept a note in her phone to ask about it later.

“You think we’d be able to perform?” Lisa asked through her curry.

“When did it become _we_?” Sayo asked, picking out another piece of carrot. The pile was quite large compared to the day before, making her frown. “I’m not very interested in joining a club, but if it does involve performances… it would be a nice way to put what I’m learning into practice.” She looked down at the sheet in thought.

Lisa grinned. “We should go check it out then. _Preferably_ before the year starts - if it’s anything like high school they’ll be packed within a day. You up for it?”

They shared a look of annoyance at memories of school gates being flooded by clubs and members trying to recruit everyone they could.

“I suppose.”

* * *

The club, they found, was in the same building as their main course. At the very end of the hall there were two doors with “Acoustic Fellows” taped to the windows. One was locked, but the other was open, with two people already inside and talking to each other. The room was small, but it had a single round table with cushioned chairs surrounding it, papers of all kinds scattered all over it. The whiteboard had some dates from the previous year with photos of what looked like a stage taped to it.

So they did do live performances. The thought made Sayo’s stomach spin a little.

“Excuse us~” Lisa said loudly, proudly walking in before Sayo. The two looked up from their hushed conversation in shock until the girl in glasses jumped to her feet with a look that could have brightened an entire football stadium.

“Are you here for the club?” she asked excitedly, nearly bouncing on her heels. Lisa giggled and Sayo crossed her arms, maintaining a look of indifference.

“If it’s for the acoustic fellows, yes. I do have a few questions.”

“Ask away, ask away! Here’s some flyers,” she said, passing a few papers to the two. One was a registration sheet, while the others were a basic outline of all the club activities. They didn’t have daily activities much to Sayo’s relief, and they met three times a week for a few hours each time except during midterms and final exams. They did tune ups, rehearsals and evaluations, lyric writing, composition and recording… it was like being in a real band.

One thing that did catch her eye was the “live” section. They performed regularly throughout the semester at festivals and events on campus and in other local areas. Iwakura was a very modest city, and probably wasn’t even a fifth the size of Tokyo. Just that alone made the idea comforting to Sayo.

“What kinds of events does it mean? Like a cultural festival?” she asked.

The girl nodded. “Yeah, events like the Obon festival, Tanabata, some other places in the city… and _here_ I guess they have a stage set up for us to perform during winter fest, graduation, stuff like that.” She chuckled with a shrug, “It’s more “ _we have to wait and see what they give us”_  than a setlist of what exactly we do.”

It seemed disorganized, but considering it wasn’t a serious band Sayo wasn’t too concerned.

“So, what instruments do you play?” the girl in glasses asked, leaning comfortably on the table. She lifted a pair of drum sticks and spun them in her fingers like it was second nature.

“I’m Yamato Maya, read it backwards and it’s Yamato Maya! I’m a drummer and music enthusiast so if you have any issues with your instruments let me know!” To emphasize she began drumming at the air, toothy grin perfecting her introduction.

Sayo almost couldn’t handle the energy radiating off of Maya as she spoke. But she couldn’t ignore how precise the girl’s air drumming was. “Hikawa Sayo. I play guitar.”

“I’m Imai Lisa! I’m _okay_ on the bass~” Lisa said, pushing her weight onto Sayo’s shoulder with a peace sign. Sayo really wanted to know why Lisa insisted on only being decent, but didn’t bother to ask. “So, this is like a real band, huh~? I’m interested!”

“Ah!” Maya exclaimed at the information, cheeks going red. She set the drumsticks back on the table and nodded with a serious glint in her eyes. “How about we do a practice session and see what you can do then?”

From behind her, the girl Maya was talking to earlier almost jumped out of her seat. Dark hair, dull grey eyes, monochrome-colored clothing… Sayo thought she looked like a walking definition of the word gloomy. “Yamato-san, the studio won’t be available until the year begins, remember? We were just discussing this.”

Even her voice sounded gloomy. It was a nice change of pace compared to Lisa and Maya, who looked like they were always at full battery. Maya jumped, cheeks going red. “Right, right! Sorry, I get a little excited when it comes to this stuff, aha~!”

“I’m Okusawa Misaki by the way,” the girl in the black hoodie said, raising a hand in greeting. She stuffed her hands into her pockets. “I gotta get going, but you’ll see me around when classes start. Yamato-san, I’m taking this.”

Sayo recognized it as the club registration form. So they would be in a band with her as well.

“Ah, cool! See you later then!” Maya called at her back. Misaki simply left without saying anything, but did quietly mutter an “excuse me” when she brushed past Sayo and Lisa.

“When is the deadline to sign up?” she asked. It wasn’t on the sheet, and she wanted to at least see how well Maya and Lisa were before making a decision.

“I think by the end of the orientation period?” Maya asked, looking at the whiteboard. In the bottom left corner in handwriting they could barely read was “deadline” and a date underneath. “Hm! So you’ve got about two weeks to turn it in.”

It was enough time.

“Say, mind showing us where this studio is? I’m excited to see it!” Lisa said, bringing her arms in front of her chest. Maya gasped and stood ramrod straight before walking over to lead them out of the room.

Seeing as the fashion course took over the first floor and the third was an empty meeting hall, Sayo wondered where the studio could be. It wasn’t until Maya opened a glass door near the entrance that had a set of stairs leading down into a basement.

“Ahh, since it’s probably soundproof, huh~?” Lisa asked, taking Maya’s lead and going before Sayo. It was chilly, and she could feel the bumps raising on her skin but seeing as Maya and Lisa didn’t comment, Sayo decided not to say anything.

“I’ve got my equipment down here already - I was in a rush to get playing as soon as possible, you can probably tell!” Maya laughed. “But it’s great!”

Once they reached the bottom of the stairs, they stood in a small grey room with a bench and the words “CiRCLE Sound Studio” painted on the wall. It seemed to be a place for other bands or classes to wait their turn. On the second door was a paper with a warning about tampering with equipment taped to it.

“Like Okusawa-san said earlier, it’s locked so we can’t go inside right now. But behind there is the studio - and let me tell you, walking in will make you feel like a pro. I think we’ll only get to visit a few times for the first term, but for the club we can use it as often as we want! Just have to make a reservation in advance, probably in the early morning so it doesn’t get fully booked.”

Sayo really wanted to see inside. They couldn’t see through the thin window as all the lights inside were turned off, so they would have to come back another day.

“Looks like we’ll come back then!” Lisa voiced her thoughts with a smile.

“Yes.”

Maya led them back up, the door slowly shutting behind them. Lisa threw her fists into the air. “Ahh, this is exciting! I’m definitely getting in on this!” she said, throwing a smile Sayo’s way. She averted her eyes and crossed her arms in an attempt to thwart her gaze, but found herself sighing.

“I will need time to make a decision,” she said sternly. Although Sayo couldn’t disagree with Lisa’s enthusiasm, she didn’t want to waste time on a club that wouldn’t get her anywhere.

Maya nodded. “Understandable! The clubroom has some amps and speakers that we can set up anytime you wanna play before then.” Sayo’s ears perked up - why hadn’t she said anything before? “Just let me know! I’d love to see your guitar!”

“When will you be available? The sooner the better,” Sayo quickly replied. She heard Lisa’s failed attempt at suppressing her laugh behind her.

“Hm… tomorrow I’ve got to get my textbooks and finish registering for some classes, but in the afternoon I’ve got nothing going on. Wanna meet up then?”

Again, Sayo felt weight on her shoulder where Lisa stuck herself, looking at Maya from behind her back. The physical contact was annoying, but considering how randomly Lisa would do it, Sayo wasn’t fast enough to stop her. “Let’s do it! I’ll bring my stuff too~ Ah, this is gonna be fun!”

“Sweet! I gotta go lock up the room, so I’ll see you there tomorrow!”

As they left the music hall, Sayo couldn’t help but feel the corners of her lips perk at the thought of getting a chance to play the guitar again. It quickly fell the moment she heard Lisa’s snickers beside her. Spending all day with such an energetic person was exhausting.

“Look who’s happy~ I finally got your name too! Sayo~” Lisa affectionately said her name in a way that made her blush. For having known Sayo for less than a day, Lisa was extremely forward.

“I apologize, I should have introduced myself.”

“Don’t be sorry! I never really asked and we didn’t have time anyway,” Lisa waved it off, stretching her arms with a content grunt. “Man, I’ve got an urge to play the bass now, but we definitely can’t do that in our dorms, huh?"

Sayo nodded with a quiet hum. They didn’t have any other specific location to go to now, and were simply wandering the campus. She wasn’t hungry, and all her errands for the week were complete. Her shoulders slumped in relief. Tsugumi was busy with school, and likely wouldn’t be home until Sayo got back to her dorm. Having nothing to do and no plans for the rest of the day made Sayo antsy.

“Hm~ You’ve never been to Kyoto, have you Sayo?”

“Not once.”

“We’ve got the rest of the day to just hang out. I’ve lived here for almost a year but never to Iwakura. Let’s go see what’s around! There might be some great places to eat~”

Sayo really couldn’t say no, especially when the thought of not having to eat the same curry full of carrots for the third time came to mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While I accidentally got the floors for the music/fashion courses in reverse, if you'd like a look at what the real music building and club/studio rooms look like at Kyoto Seika: http://www.kyoto-seika.ac.jp/edu/popularculture/facility/
> 
> The band will not be 100% Roselia, as after lots of careful thought I came to the conclusion that things wouldn't make sense if I stuck to what's canon.


	3. Chapter 3

Iwakura was probably the smallest town Sayo had ever seen. She and Lisa knew that, but were quick to realize how true it really was when they found themselves fifteen minutes into their walk and were still surrounded by houses and apartments. Luckily there was a restaurant just across the street from the campus, but Lisa wanted to go a little more outside the comfort bubble Sayo had created for herself.

Still, the view of nature completely surrounding them, the narrow paths and streets and occasional car coming by was nice. Aside from the gravel under their feet, the only thing they could hear were the rustling leaves and sputtering engines of trucks rushing by three blocks down.

“Man, there really is nothing here, huh~”

Sayo nodded. “I wonder if I should invest in a bicycle…”

“Good idea!” Lisa said, taking a look at a completely full rack as they walked by another apartment complex. Clothes were hanging out to dry, some shops were closed or abandoned altogether...

The sun was finally beginning its descent, and as the thought of dinner lingered in the back of her mind, Sayo could start to feel the emptiness in her stomach. Maybe she should have just stuck with the curry. At the very least, they had internet signal where they were, and could easily look up any nearby restaurants. To her annoyance, the only one “near” them was twenty minutes away on foot.

“Should we go back and just use the train?” Lisa asked with an eyebrow raised. Sayo slid her phone back into her pocket and looked up. It was going to take just as long to get back than it would have to just walk to the place.

“Let’s just keep going,” she said. “Maybe we’ll find something else on the way.”

Just as she said that, Lisa grabbed her sleeve and yanked on it, dragging Sayo across the three foot road with her finger pointed at a parking lot full of trucks for an electric company. “Sayo! Look, look!” she yelled, nearly jumping on her feet. The sign was small but they could clearly see the word “okonomiyaki” written in tiny print underneath the hours of operation. If Lisa hadn’t pointed it out, Sayo would have brushed it off as another home.

Sayo was about to protest, especially when looking at the building that had seen better days, but Lisa already had her foot in the door and she didn’t want to be left standing in the street by herself.

The inside was cute and homely, with a few tables and a single staff member waiting for them at the door with a smile on her face. After giving them menus and guiding them to a table, she left to retrieve the complimentary glasses of water.

“Haa~ I’m so hungry,” Lisa whined, letting her head fall into her menu. Sayo’s stomach almost agreed but was silenced with a large gulp of water. The smells coming from the kitchen along with the sound of sizzling and cooking going on at the only other occupied table in the restaurant made her head spin.

They came to a decision together and ordered their ingredients separately, Sayo ignoring how Lisa looked at her with a smirk when she expressed she didn’t want carrots to be part of her bowl. Then, remembering what Lisa had asked before they set off campus, she closed her menu and set it down.

“Have you lived in Kyoto your whole life?” Sayo asked, wanting to change the subject. She knew Lisa played bass, was energetic and fashionable, but that was about it. If they were going to be in the same club _and_ class, and Lisa was already referring to her without any honorifics, there was no harm in trying to at least get to know the girl.

Right?

She grinned, this time a lot larger than before as she leaned back in her seat, almost in surprise at Sayo’s question. In turn, Sayo simply looked down at the drink selection. “I have! Well, somewhat. I lived in Tokyo as a kid, then my family moved to this part of the country when I was like thirteen. But this is my first time in Iwakura. It’s a lot more quiet than I expected so it’s kind of shocking, you know?”

Lisa was right. Even though Sayo loathed the noise and never sleeping Tokyo, to be thrown into the complete opposite of that within a day was really jarring. But she had specifically chosen her university and had to deal with it. With Lisa and Maya around, noise would soon come back into her life anyway. “I know what you mean. As for myself, I lived in Tokyo all my life,” she said quietly.

“Ooh! It must be really scary being here then,” Lisa said. “I’m technically a local and it’s still… _wow_.”

Sayo shook her head, eyes catching the sight of their server bringing their respective bowls on a tray. The grill between them had been turned on and warmed their hands as they talked.

She thought about what to say, not really finding those words to be true. “It’s not so much scary as it is just different. I quite like it, to be honest. There are just… some things back home I wish I had here.” She watched as Lisa’s expression fell from surprise to concentrated and then finally back to her usual grin, but before she could continue they were interrupted by their food.

“Ah, yes! Thank you,” Lisa said, grabbing hers and handing the other to Sayo. The conversation ended, replaced by their desire to settle their stomachs.

At the end of the meal, Lisa let out a large sigh, dropping her spoon into her empty bowl. Sayo followed suit, licking her lips in satisfaction. Everything about it had tasted so distinct and fresh compared to other places she had been to in the past, it rendered her speechless from the first to last bite.

“Anything else?” the server asked as she collected their things. Lisa hummed, looking over the dessert section before Sayo stopped her, mentioning the long walk they needed to take back to campus. The server simply smiled and took all the dishes to the back, leaving them with the check.

“I can pay,” Sayo offered, standing from her seat. Lisa almost argued, but her words fell on deaf ears as Sayo completely ignored her, taking a few bills from her pocket and walking to the front podium. As soon as she was done, Lisa stood from her seat and followed her out, taking in a deep breath of air.

“Thanks~” she said, hopping down the steps and back onto the road. Before, there were at least some cars around. Now it was like being in an abandoned city. “Do you wanna look around some more, or head back?”

Sayo thought about it. She was full, and maybe a walk could help get rid of the bloated feeling in her gut. “Just a little more,” she said.

Further up the road from the okonomiyaki place they found themselves in a small intersection where there was a convenience store, a bookstore, a clinic and a bakery that was closed and had it’s shutters down. Of course, completely surrounded by houses and small offices. Sayo stopped as they got to the end of the road that led nowhere. Ten minutes more would only find them a dental office, and so they chose then to stop their small tour.

The sun was almost set at this point, and not only did Sayo finally start feeling the whole day weighing on her shoulders, she also needed to get back and call Tsugumi as soon as she could. “We should head back,” she said, turning towards the road leading back into the quiet narrow roads.

“Let’s just take the train home,” Lisa giggled, pushing Sayo towards the station.

It was only a two minute ride, but the wait for each train was every twenty minutes instead of every two or three. The entire ride Sayo couldn’t help but give Lisa the stink eye, muttering about how they could have just walked the entire wait.

* * *

At exactly ten Sayo collapsed on her bed, out of the bath and in her warm nightwear, ready to finally be comfortable. Her phone hadn’t buzzed all afternoon, but as soon as she looked at it upon her return she received a message from Tsugumi. The only thing in it was a sticker of a goat peeking at her from behind a wall. It was far too adorable.

She decided to call her, as unlike Tsugumi, she didn’t waste money on things like stickers and thus had nothing to respond with.

“Sayo!” came her excited voice. In the same moment, Sayo could feel her entire body relax. “How are you? How was your day?”

“Exhausting,” she replied sternly. From getting her books to meeting up with Lisa, and being around her bright energy all day completely drained her. Sayo stared at her ceiling in thought, wondering what to say as Tsugumi stayed quiet, expecting her to continue. She wasn’t sure whether to call Lisa her _friend_ \- her intentions of getting to know her more recotched back into her side of the court.

But she was easygoing and carefree, making conversation with Sayo seem interesting. And if it wasn’t then Lisa was at least a great actress. With a sigh, she rolled onto her side and stared at the wall, wondering if the girl next door was sleeping. She tended to hit the wall a lot throughout the night.

“I… made a friend,” she finally said, wondering if Tsugumi had hung up. She didn’t, and her sentence was met with a gasp. “Her name is Imai Lisa. We’re-” her words from earlier, wondering where Lisa had suddenly decided they were _both_ joining the music club together, rang in her mind, “-thinking of joining a club together.”

Tsugumi let out a breath. “Sayo, that’s… I’m happy for you! See, you just have to put yourself out there and it’s easy to make friends!” She giggled, and the sound made Sayo’s heart melt. That she would be so concerned for something as insignificant as Sayo having friends made her feel so important. She didn’t want to mention it was all pretty much Lisa’s doing. “What club? Does it have to do with music?”

Sayo hummed, nodding. “It’s more of a band than it is a simple club. However, I’m not sure if I want to join yet.” While the idea was fine, she also wanted to confirm Lisa and Maya’s skills. Tsugumi stayed quiet, her signal to continue. “We’ll be meeting tomorrow to demonstrate our performance. I’ll see then if I want to sign up.”

Now with the words out in the open, Sayo couldn’t help but think she sounded extremely arrogant. Despite that, she also didn’t want her time wasted - not when she could just practice and study on her own if they weren’t adequate enough.

“I hope you do it,” Tsugumi said with a small laugh. “Even if they aren’t _great_ at it, the whole point is to have fun, right? That’s what clubs are for.” She heard something crinkle in the background, sounding similar to a package being opened up. Tsugumi continued, and Sayo wanted to chuckle when she realized the girl had her mouth full.

“Besides, if all you do is study and practice what you studied, it would get pretty boring, right? Try to have fun, Sayo.”

Fun? The reason Sayo picked up the guitar and practiced for hours until her fingers were raw and sore, stared at sheet music and studied each one until she knew them like the back of her hand wasn’t done for fun. They both knew that.

“Tsugumi…”

“I know. I do. That’s why I’m telling you,” her voice softened, and Sayo could _hear_ the smile in her words, “Just have fun. The more you do it, the better you’ll get, I promise you. But it’s your decision.”

Tsugumi always seemed to know the right thing to say. Sayo was in college now, yet she always felt like a spoiled child in the face of her girlfriend. Then a thought came to mind, a thought that made her wince in guilt. “How are things on your end?” she asked.

“Hm? Uhm… well, Moca-chan got a scholarship for a university somewhere in tow-”

“I meant _you_.” Sayo really didn’t care to hear about anyone else at the moment. “How is Hazawa Tsugumi?”

It took her a moment, and another crinkle followed before Tsugumi let out a light laugh. “Well, listen to this! I was appointed as Vice President of the student council! It was a landslide vote which makes me feel sort of bad…”

“Nonsense. You deserve it. Congratulations, Tsugumi.”

“Ehe! Thank you. I’m going to do my best this year, since they all put their faith into me.”

Sayo felt her eyes soften. She and Tsugumi had one thing in common: putting their all into anything they did. Sayo’s approach was more formulaic and calculated while Tsugumi followed her heart, something that helped her achieve results a lot more often. Still, Sayo was never disappointed in her, and loved her all the more for it. “I’m happy for you. Please don’t overwork yourself too much though. It would hurt me to hear about someone else nursing you back to health.”

“I-I!” Tsugumi was at a loss for words, and Sayo clutched her thin sheets, chest tightening from how cute she was. How she wished to see her. “Jeez, that’s not fair.”

Sayo’s laugh was soft. “But it’s true.”

Tsugumi let out a long groan of frustration. “Nggh! I love you!” she yelled, making Sayo’s heart leap.

Their conversation drifted down to whispers until Tsugumi was softly lulling Sayo to sleep, the fatigue finally grabbing hold of her eyelids and pulling her into darkness.

* * *

“Yo! You’re here!” Maya called as she approached the clubroom. Sayo and Lisa were waiting outside the door, instrument cases strapped to their backs and expectant eyes watching her as she held up the key hanging on her finger.

After her conversation with Tsugumi, Sayo decided to go into it with a clear head. Her expectations had been far too high, and if she simply _played_ with Lisa and Maya, maybe she would find herself enjoying it. Maybe.

They entered and set their things on the table while Maya turned on the lights and shut the door behind her. The room wasn’t soundproof like the studio was, but considering the floor was strictly for the music course Sayo wasn’t concerned about being too loud.

“My drums are a little too big to carry around the campus so I’ve got these today,” Maya said, pointing to an electronic drum kit in the corner of the room. It was much smaller than a traditional drum set, and it had wires all over the place, connecting it to the speakers flanking the whiteboard. Lisa and Sayo took out their instruments seeing as Maya’s was already set up. Instantly, the drummer screamed and rushed towards Sayo’s side of the room.

“Is… is that..?! Is that…?!” she yelled, leaning down until she was face to face with it. “An ESP M-II?!” Cheeks going red and eyes dragging across the neck and body, Maya took a step forward with a deep chuckle.

“O-oh, oh~ How nice, how nice to be working with you! Please take care of mee…!”

Was she… talking to the guitar? She was impressed Maya could instantly tell what it was upon looking at it. Still, the cackling and drooling going on before her was weird and Sayo didn’t know what to do about it, so she ignored Maya to clip the tuner to the head of her guitar. Once she started strumming it, Maya let out a loud cheer.

“You’re beautiful! Oohhh this is nice! Nice, nice!”

“Yes, now _please_ mind your distance,” Sayo nearly snapped. Maya went rigid and saluted, taking a dramatic step backward before turning her attention to Lisa’s bass and falling right back into her hollers. At the very least she was away from Sayo, who continued tuning her guitar in peace.

“A BTL! It’s a _red_ BTL!” she screamed, falling to her knees. Lisa laughed nervously, averting her gaze from the dramatics going on at her feet. Sayo was surprised to see their instruments were from the same manufacturer, and it made her slightly excited to hear Lisa play it. They quickly found amps and cables to plug their instruments into.

Maya, after getting over her excitement, jumped behind her drums with sticks in her hand and waved them. “You guys know how to play _landscape_ by Low-Pass?”

“Ahh, I think so! It was one of the first songs I learned since it’s pretty easy,” Lisa laughed. She adjusted her bass and Sayo nodded. It was perfect. Sayo preferred playing fast paced songs, but in this case it was a song that every player had a huge role in. If Lisa called it easy, and Maya suggested it, then it wouldn’t be too hard to keep up with each other.

Tapping her sticks, Maya whispered a few numbers as a countdown before she took the lead, Sayo following immediately after.

She was, at first, a little rusty and could feel her fingers slip on the frets, but as she got into the song, head bobbing along, she could feel the fire settle in her fingertips again. Sayo could hear Lisa’s bass lowly humming along with her beat, and Maya’s passionate drumming propped them both up.

When the drumming stopped and it was her and Lisa playing together, she looked up and saw her wearing the biggest smirk. Sayo averted her eyes to see Maya, tapping on the cymbal, nod her head along with her guitar. It was a strange feeling; up until that moment she had played all by herself or along with recordings of other bands, yet she never felt the current running through her arms and legs, an electricity that made her shudder. She couldn’t stop to hide the half-grin growing on her lips before they caught it, and Maya let out a laugh as the drumming came back.

Tsugumi told her to just have fun and enjoy the moment. Sayo couldn’t have been more grateful for those words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post/math rock is my favorite music genre. So many great bands and songs...


	4. Chapter 4

After turning in her club registration form and spending the rest of the week looking over her schedule, it was finally time for the first term to begin. The campus was a lot more packed with new students, old students, professors and administrators running around, trying to get to their classes and offices in time. The orientation period had come and gone in a flash, but as Sayo had prepared all her things before then, it had gone more smoothly than it would have had she waited.

“Aren’t you glad you’re not one of them?” Maya asked with a chuckle. She and Sayo bumped into each other in the hallway of their dorm, and the drummer had invited her for breakfast together.

Sayo looked out the window of the cafe, spotting multiple students carrying easels and textbooks in one arm, trying to rush down the stairs while also trying to not bump into anybody. Sayo wasn’t a morning person - she hated waking up early if she didn’t have to, and it was a struggle trying to get out of a warm bed in the winter.

So she made sure none of her classes began before 10am. Maya was in the same boat, so they at least found something in common outside of music.

Taking a sip of her coffee, Sayo relaxed her shoulders. Just the thought of being caught up in such a crowd made her uneasy. “I would rather smash my guitar than deal with that,” she accidentally let slip. Maya gasped and dropped her fork, almost as if Sayo had gone out of her way to insult her.

“D-don’t do that! There’s no way you can get another like it…” It almost looked like Maya began to tear up at the thought, and Sayo sucked in whatever comment she had on her tongue.

They spent the rest of their breakfast chatting about whatever came to mind before Maya had to take off for one of her classes, leaving Sayo alone in the cafe. For a moment, Sayo realized it might have been the first time she was by herself since meeting Lisa, and it was extremely nice to be surrounded by nothing but the clatter of dishes and calm chatter going on behind the counter.

Now that classes had officially begun, the studio would also be open. Their club didn’t officially start for another week to allow them to get used to campus life, and the thought of having to wait even longer annoyed her just a little. But seeing as she had already spent two weeks doing all her preparing, Sayo didn’t see why one more would hurt.

She leaned back in her seat, watching as the paths began to clear up. Her first lecture wasn’t for another hour, but she didn’t feel like going back to her room when she already ate and had coffee. She could have done some wandering if she wanted to, but she also didn’t want to waste time going far and having to rush back for her lecture.

Just as she began to gather her things, a tray hit the table she was sitting at. Sayo recognized the same black hoodie from a few weeks ago and those dull grey eyes nearly covered by the rim of her baseball cap. She still stood to throw her trash in the appropriate recycling bins and came back to sit with Misaki, who had helped herself to Maya’s previous seat.

“Good morning,” she said. Sayo awkwardly repeated the phrase and wrapped her hands around her cup of coffee. Misaki let out a yawn and took off her cap, letting it hang on the edge of the table with her backpack. “It would have been awkward to sit by myself, and I kinda know you so. Yeah, hope you don’t mind.”

Sayo raised an eyebrow. She was probably the _last_ person anyone should have run to for companionship, even if they were desperate. “I see…” Sayo raked her mind for something to talk about at least. Then she remembered where she met Misaki and shifted gears instantly.

“So you’re interested in music,” she said. It was _something_ they could talk about without Sayo losing interest. Misaki stuck her spoon in her mouth and nodded, letting it hang between her lips. “What instrument do you play?”

Misaki leaned back, spoon still in her mouth (somehow the sight irritated Sayo) and turned her head to the window where there were only a few students milling about, the rest having shuffled into their classrooms. “I wouldn’t call it an instrument, but I like making electronic music. Composing is part of the music course so I’m gonna give DJing a try.”

For some reason Sayo wasn’t surprised at all to hear that. Just from the way she held herself, Misaki didn’t seem the type to carry around something like a guitar or drums. It might have been a little rude for Sayo to think. She and Misaki sat in silence a little, and while it would have been nice to continue talking, Misaki didn’t seem to indicate she was uncomfortable at all. Instead, she ate her breakfast, looked out the window and sipped at her orange juice like Sayo wasn’t even there.

Thus, Sayo gave up and finished off her coffee in peace. Considering her current streak Misaki was going to be the only person she met who left her alone, and Sayo wasn’t going to let the chance slip by.

They walked out of the cafe thirty minutes later, Misaki having nothing to do and Sayo needing to get to the lecture hall for her first class. She didn’t particularly care and found history to be boring, but she really wasn’t going to allow her efforts of carrying around the large textbook - that was the priciest one of all - go to waste.

“Guess I’ll head off to the info center and browse the internet for a while,” Misaki said as they passed the entrance. She adjusted the bag on her shoulder and fiddled with her cap. “If you’ve got questions about composition let me know. Seeing as we’re in the same club and all.”

Sayo wasn’t an expert at any other genre but rock (and even then it wasn’t much), but it would be a good way to expand on her knowledge and get to know other styles of music. “Sure,” she simply said, turning away from her. She heard the doors of the building slide open as Misaki went inside without another word, allowing her to finally head into her first college lecture.

* * *

Two hours later, Sayo saw the sun again and felt life and color return to her world. The other students trailing behind her, dragging their feet like they had just come out of a funeral. Sayo couldn’t blame them - it was an atrociously long and tedious lecture that involved more note taking than it did actually learning anything.

“Haha! You should look at yourself, Sayo~” Imai Lisa sang as she threw an arm around Sayo’s shoulders. The dread in her face drained immediately, replaced by shock and then annoyance at once again being pulled into one of Lisa’s show of affection. Letting her go, Lisa raised her hands in innocence and walked alongside her. “How was it? Horrible, right?”

“How do you know?” she asked. As classes let out and students found themselves with nothing to do, the campus filled with life. Artists were painting and sketching on the stairs at the pond again, someone was showing off a clay model they built and there was even a guy playing acoustic guitar by a tree. It was like walking through a movie.

Lisa giggled. “Someone told me about that professor. Doesn’t really talk, kinda… hangs around and lets a slide show do the teaching.. I bailed as soon as I could so now I’ve got a culinary arts class instead~!”

Sayo wasn’t envious of the culinary class, but she certainly was envious that she hadn’t heard of it until the last moment when it was too late. She would only have to deal with it twice a week anyway, and it wasn’t like attendance was really mandatory in college.

High school Sayo, who always enforced the rules and followed the student handbook to a T, screamed from the abyss.

“What are you up to now? Hungry?”

“Not really. I had breakfast with Yamato-san not too long ago.”

Lisa perked up immediately, patting Sayo’s shoulder a little too harshly. “Look at you! Making friends and hanging together~” She wiped an invisible tear on her face, taking her teasing to the next level. Sayo wanted to point out how they had only known each other for all but three weeks.

She slightly shoved Lisa away with her textbook, looking at it in annoyance as they walked by the main building. Sayo wanted to drop it off in her room before heading to her English class, and Lisa followed her, stopping at the doorway as Sayo was only going to dump it on her desk and head out.

“So! Since we’ve got time, I was thinking…” Lisa gave a long side glance at Sayo, who’s ears perked up at her tone. “Maybe we can go check out that studio. They said it’d be open, right?”

Rather than wasting time wandering around, Sayo liked that idea.

When they entered the building, unlike before when it was completely empty and open, the lobby and fashion classrooms were nearly _screeching_ with conversations, sewing machines and lectures going on. Girls were sitting on the floor in groups, drinks and magazines in hand, bags carelessly thrown on the ground where Sayo’s feet were coming through. She grit her teeth and bared with it, eventually stomping her way to the door Maya had brought them down earlier.

“Now I know why our stuff is all soundproof!” Lisa laughed. Rather than keep their noise from getting out, it was to keep the fashion course from being too distracting. Sayo ignored that thought, not wanting to think about the chaos when she noticed the lights inside the studio were now on.

She turned the knob and pulled when she realized it was unlocked. Lisa followed suit with a sound of awe coming out of her mouth. It wasn’t just a room but an entire hallway. There were four doors on both sides of the hall but they both found they were all locked with the final door at the very end being wide open.

The first thing that met them when they walked through was an API console, decked out with lit up buttons, knobs and a monitor on the wall across from it. There was a small window they could see through where the recording booth was, and Sayo noticed there were already drums set up in the corner. Everything looked modern, clean and professional - Maya hadn’t been lying.

“Wow…” Lisa said, leaning forward to look through the windows. Sayo wasn’t going to touch the console, but her fingers brushed the doorknob that would take her inside. She tried to open it, but found it locked. Ignoring the disappointment taking refuge in her bones, Sayo turned to Lisa who dropped her shoulders. “They’re all locked…!”

There was another window by the locked door that revealed the rest of the recording booth, where two smaller rooms with glass doors were. Both were obscured by a curtain. Sayo sighed and shook her head. There was nothing they could do with everyone locked up.

“We’ll be back next week,” she said, heading for the door. Lisa followed suit, with much less excitement than when she walked in. “Yamato-san should know more about everything anyway.”

“True, true!”

When they climbed back upstairs and left the building with Sayo’s urge to stomp on someone’s bag growing stronger the more she had to walk around them, they could only sigh again. Laughter off in the distance and students having loud, exaggerated conversations did nothing to brighten the mood. Someone approaching them had Sayo lift her gaze from the ground, meeting with bright golden eyes that made her clench her toes. The girl was short, but her static face and stuff posture almost reminded Sayo of herself.

“So you checked it too, Lisa.”

Lisa lifted her head so fast Sayo could feel her _own_ neck burn in pain, but the smile on her face was giant, and she jumped off the ledge they were leaning on to throw her arms around the girl’s shoulders, smothering her in an embrace. “Yukinaaa! Yukina, you’re finally here! Yu-ki-na!” she screamed, spinning them in circles. Sayo was just glad to finally be relieved of her duties as Lisa’s target of affection.

The girl, Yukina, placed a hand on Lisa’s elbow to pry her off, though she did so gently and Lisa didn’t seem to mind.Her small smile was gentle as Lisa continued to brush their cheeks together like a cat would in greeting. Then, she focused her attention on Sayo, a mask of cool indifference draped over her features. Sayo couldn’t tell whether she was being sized up or not, but she really didn’t care.

“Hello,” the girl said coldly, though not impolite. Sayo nodded. Silence.

“This!” Lisa interrupted hurriedly, as though wanting to defuse the time bomb waiting to explode. She put her hands on the girl’s shoulders and looked at Sayo from behind her head. It was the happiest Sayo had seen her. “Is Minato Yukina. We’ve been friends forever.”

Sayo hummed. A friend of Lisa’s or not, she was still staring at her like Sayo had done something wrong. It was only natural she stare back with equal animosity.

Lisa began to flick her gaze between the two as the staring match ensued, slowly beginning to look like a fish in hot water before Sayo cracked under the pressure, closing her eyes.

“I’m Hikawa Sayo,” she said stiffly. Yukina nodded. “I’m part of the music course. Guitar.”

“Yukina’s joining the music course too! She was originally going for something different so the last minute change held her up,” Lisa said hurriedly. Again, Yukina nodded. Was she one of those humanoid robots making headlines? No, that was silly. “She’s a great singer.”

“I see.”

Yukina crossed her arms. “I heard there was a studio in the basement, but while the doors were unlocked none of the lights were on.” So that was why the studio door was wide open. “A shame, it would have been nice to see everything they had to offer.”

“Right?” Lisa latched onto her back again, arms wrapping around Yukina’s waist. To anyone else, the physical touches were no more than the two getting along, innocent friendship. But to Sayo, who liked girls and was currently dating a girl and often held her in such a manner, the meaning was completely different. She really couldn’t help turning her head away in embarrassment, like she was watching something private.

“Ah! That’s right!” Lisa suddenly said, hands fishing through her bag until she handed a key to Yukina. “Your room key! We should hurry and get your stuff in there. You have a solo room, don’t you?”

Sayo grimaced. To be on the same floor as Yukina, and witnessing what was going on before her eyes, meant being on the same floor as Lisa.

She checked the time on her phone. Another forty minutes before her English class.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Misaki is gonna be the next Marshmello
> 
> Changed the rating from G to T because I've convinced myself that I actually *do* want some spicy SayoTsugu later.


	5. Chapter 5

Sayo had no idea why she was even following them around. Forty minutes could have been spent on the internet like Misaki, in her own room, studying on the millions of notes she had just finished taking for two hours… anything but watching Lisa completely switch gears and fawn over a girl who was barely giving her the time of day.

Then again, the light bumping of shoulders and breaths of laughter coming from Yukina was far from _ignoring_ her. Maybe Lisa was just _that_ affectionate it seemed that way. Sayo was glad to be out of that mess at least.

She stared at her room door and the urge to go inside and get a break from all the ruckus grew stronger the longer the three stood outside Yukina’s room. She really didn’t care to listen to their conversation, and eventually gave up trying, letting herself take a mental break, letting her mind wander to other things. She couldn’t help but think of the one thing she was most excited about: the club, leading her to think of the people around her.

Maya and Misaki were reliable people to have around. On one hand, Maya was extremely knowledgeable about instruments and was able to pinpoint them with a single look. Her skills on the drum weren’t anything to scoff at either, and their last small session had provided Sayo enough evidence that she was reliable.

On the other hand, while she hadn’t been around much, Misaki liked composition and creating music. Sayo really had no prior experience with electronic music, but if Misaki offered to help her or answer questions without being asked, there had to be a level of confidence behind it.

Then there was Lisa. Sayo opened her eyes and watched as her hands wandered across Yukina’s shoulders in a mock massage, tilting her head back in some sort of whine before the conversation moved on. She had very little confidence in herself but her bass playing and put herself down, but when it came time to actually play had no issue keeping up with Sayo’s pace. It was enough of an example to show what Lisa was capable of if she put the work into it.

“I must get going,” she finally got out. Lisa and Yukina looked up from their conversation. The most progress they made was a whole foot in the door in the last twenty minutes. Sayo was absolutely not going to be waiting any longer for them to actually get Yukina’s belongings inside. “I have a class soon and I don’t want to be late.”

Lisa turned to her, and Yukina simply stayed silent, not budging a single inch. “Go ahead! We’ll see you around.” Her voice was still friendly, even though Sayo could feel her face twisted in annoyance. She wasn’t sure if they could tell she had enough of being their third wheel or not, but it didn’t really matter.

Yukina nodded, and Sayo took that as her queue to leave, which she did with gusto. As she left the dorms, it was like someone had hauled an entire ton of baggage straight off her shoulders, and Sayo found herself at the door to her classroom a lot faster than she expected.

“Ah.”

“Ah… hey.”

Misaki, sitting near the back wearing her cap and staring down at her phone, looked up from her seat the moment Sayo opened the door. There were a few others sitting at random desks, engrossed in whatever they were doing on their phones. Sayo took Misaki’s wave as a sign to sit near her, though they didn’t exchange greetings.

“You’re the studious type, huh?” Misaki asked, locking her phone. Sayo looked at her desk in confusion. The only thing she had on it was her notebook and a few highlighters - it was English after all. Sayo raised an eyebrow in response, and Misaki chuckled lowly. “I just meant I haven’t seen many people even attend class, much less pay attention.”

Now that was a surprise. Sayo could remember most of the other students taking notes as vigorously as she was earlier. Misaki shrugged at the question mark that was no doubt coming off her head.

“I don’t know, seeing as this is an arts school, you’d think people would care more about their circles and club stuff, yeah?” she explained. “In my case I’m just kinda here since I have nothing to do. But since we’re in the same club I might as well show you my setup.”

“Setup?”

Misaki grinned. “My DJ equipment. It's a pain having to carry it around but the advisor said it was fine to leave it in there. Let’s have a look.” She pocketed her phone and stood from her seat.

“Wait, now?”

Sayo was floored by the suggestion. Was Misaki asking her to completely skip her class? For their club? She knew it was a common thing to do in university, but Sayo couldn’t just ditch on the very first day. It sounded like Misaki wasn’t even attending any of her classes if going to one was because she was _bored_ , but Sayo hadn’t missed a single day in high school; she was on the disciplinary committee after all, what kind of example would she have set?

But the way Misaki was looking at her with a cool gaze, posture relaxed as if to tell her it was perfectly okay to do so, Sayo couldn’t help but feel the temptation to follow grow with every second. This was university, where the class sizes were far too large for their professors to think twice about who wasn’t around - and an _arts_ university on top of it. Would it be really that bad to forgo English in order to learn more about what she was here for?

Without missing a beat, Sayo packed her things and followed Misaki out of the classroom, feeling like the biggest delinquent in the world.

* * *

“Things like this really aren’t that big a deal,” Misaki yawned, pulling the rim of her cap down to shield her eyes from the sun as soon as they exited the building. While Sayo wanted to believe those words, years of following student handbooks and being a good student thought otherwise.

They passed the cafeteria, then the information center, and finally the music building. It was a lot quieter than before, and Sayo could hear the voices of professors giving lectures echoing through the hall as they went up the stairs. Sayo wouldn’t have her music class for another two days, but as they walked to the end of the hall, she could see the main classroom was completely full. She briefly wondered if the others were in the same class with her.

Misaki quietly opened the door, letting her in first. Sayo noticed a large black bag that Misaki approached as she opened up her backpack, setting a laptop down before unzipping it. “This is what we call a controller, it’s where we do all the mixing and effects,” she said, gently taking it out of the bag. To Sayo, who had no clue about technology outside her smartphone and laptop, it looked like something out of a sci-fi film.

Cables were pulled and Misaki took out a pair of headphones from within her backpack, handing them to Sayo. It all looked far too complicated, but Misaki set it all up with ease, the only issue of it all getting all the cables to lay flat on the table. Once it was done, Sayo was looking at a setup she didn’t quite understand.

“What is this?” she asked, pointing to it all. Misaki rounded the table to stand in front of her, hands presenting the thing like it was on display.

“This is the controller, the main part of everything. It even has turntables here. I have software on my computer where I have all the music, but with this I can control how it comes out. So…” She slightly nudged her way in front of Sayo to click around on her laptop, opening up a program that looked even more complicated. “This is one of the basic tracks that you can play with…”

Misaki hit the play button on the controller, and from the laptop speaker came a light electronic sound with a few beats. It continued to play even when Misaki stepped away from it, and Sayo felt her eyes widen.

“Until you hit the pause button here, it’ll keep playing on a loop,” Misaki said with a knowing smirk, as if seeing the question flash across Sayo’s face. “And if I do this… it’ll add filters.” Turning a knob made it distort until they could barely hear it, and it cleared up when Misaki dialed it back. Going back to her laptop, she added a second beat, sitting right underneath the looping one.

She pointed to it. “Now that I’ve got two tracks, I can use both of these decks,” she gestured to both sides of the controller. “And now I can mix them.” With a push of a button and more movements Sayo couldn’t follow, Misaki had the first song completely transition into the second track without issue until it faded completely.

“Amazing,” Sayo blurted. She jumped when she realized what she said, and Misaki stepped back to look at her with a calm chuckle. Clearing her throat, Sayo put her serious face back on. “What made you want to pursue this?”

Misaki stopped the music and hummed, leaning against the table with a shrug. “I like doing stuff that relaxes me,” she said. Sayo nodded. “And it just feels good to get that _“ah, I made a good sound”_ feeling, you know? So I figured, there’s really nothing much going for me, might as well do that.”

“I see. You’re very talented.”

“Ha, thanks.”

They shared a smile, and Misaki proceeded to show Sayo the other effects and transitions, all the while Sayo felt like she had ditched class just to attend a different one. Nearly an hour later, the door opened again, with Lisa poking her head in while Sayo was trying her hand in adjusting volume to change tracks.

“There you are!”

Yukina and Maya’s heads sprouted from her shoulders, the two of them unable to look more different if they tried while Lisa approached them with a smile. “I was giving Yukina a tour of the place, but…” she squinted a little with a smirk, leaning until she was nearly in Sayo’s face. “Didn’t you say you had a class to go to?”

The guilt that had begun to disappear in Sayo’s stomach came back with full force, and she almost dropped Misaki’s headphones had it not been for the DJ’s quick reflexes. Lisa laughed aloud, stepping back to give Sayo her space before making room for Yukina and Maya to enter. Immediately, Maya was flying to the table, hands floating just an inch over Misaki’s equipment while her fingers wiggled around.

“Yamato-san…” Misaki sighed, lowering the headphones onto the table, “You saw this already.”

“I know! I know, but…! Agggh!” Maya screamed, slapping her hands onto her cheeks as a way to snap herself out of her daze. “Every time I look at it I just get so _excited_ _!_ Remember, let me know if you ever need maintenance on it!”

Misaki sighed again, looking away from the excited bespectacled girl. “I really don’t think that’ll be necessary…”

“So, Yukina! This is the club I was talking about!” Lisa said, introducing Yukina to the space. “Our main course will still use the studio too, but here we do live shows, practice together, fun stuff like that! Wouldn’t it be great to join?”

Maya nodded. “Yeah! Lisa-san mentioned how you’re a great singer. It’d be fun to have a vocalist join us!”

Sayo looked to Yukina, who had her arms crossed tightly against her chest, golden eyes scanning everything she could. The room was as bare bones as it could get, with the exception of Maya’s electric drums and Misaki’s equipment. Not that they really had the chance to decorate the place to give it more life, but under Yukina’s harsh gaze Sayo felt like they were suddenly under an audit. They could feel the awkward energy in the air as Yukina then dropped her arms and shook her head, turning right back around to the door. She turned her head to look at the four in the room, a harsh look in her eye.

“I don’t have time for this.”

Dumbfounded would have been an understatement. The four left in the room stared at the empty space at the door for quite a while, mouths wide open before Lisa was storming right after her.

Misaki began to put her things away once Lisa disappeared. “Well, it can’t be helped,” she muttered, shutting her laptop down. Sayo nodded in agreement, leaning out of the room to take a peek at the hallway. It seemed the two girls had disappeared completely.

A buzz in her pocket made her step back into the room to check on her phone. Tsugumi had messaged her, though the notification indicated it was just a sticker. Still, Sayo opened it, wondering what kind of sticker it was. The moment the app opened she felt a smile growing on her face. It was a cat peeking over a bush.

Sayo, having grown tired of being the only one without a pack of stickers to spam Tsugumi with, went out of her way to purchase a cartoon dog sticker pack a few nights prior. She had never actually put them to use though. Looking through the lineup, she decided to send the one with the dog peeking around a wall.

It was read immediately. The first thing Tsugumi sent was an excited “ _uwaa!”_ followed by a sticker of the cat waving excitedly.

_Sayo!_

Sayo felt her chest grow warm. The phrase "hopelessly in love" barely scratched the surface of what she harbored toward Tsugumi.

“You look like you’re enjoying yourself there,” Misaki said as she slung her backpack over her shoulders. Maya gave a soft snicker beside her. Sayo nearly threw her arm from her face once she realized their attention was fully on her, having completely forgotten about the rest of the world during her exchange with Tsugumi.

“What?” she asked quickly, sounding at the verge of panic.

Misaki shook her head, fiddling with her cap again while Maya planted her arms behind her back almost suspiciously. “Nothing, nothing.”

The smirk on her face most certainly was not _nothing_ , but Sayo wasn’t going to question it. The farther they got from the topic the better. “As it seems Imai-san won’t be coming back, I’ll be taking my leave,” she said, gathering her composure. “Thank you for the information today Okusawa-san, I look forward to learning more.”

“Sure. Hit me up whenever you want,” Misaki answered with a nod. She bid them both goodbye and stiffly walked out, fingers tracing the shape of her phone sitting in her pocket. For some reason, she really wanted to hear Tsugumi’s voice.

“Come on, Yukina!” she heard coming through the door upon touching the final stair. Sayo wanted to roll her eyes at her luck. If she simply walked by, surely she could avoid catching Lisa’s attention.

“I don’t have time to waste _playing_ band, Lisa. This is an important time to solidify our careers, not throw it away as a hobby.”

Sayo was almost in their sight. The moment the doors slid open and took a step out, she prayed to all the gods watching above that she be protected.

Brown hair, then silver hair… Sayo was directly in Lisa’s line of sight, but she didn’t say anything, wanting nothing more than to find a nice quiet spot to call Tsugumi. The girl was likely waiting for her to reply to her last message, too.

“Ah! Sayo-!”

She winced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tsugu I don't mean to bully you, just be patient.


	6. Chapter 6

“Sayo-!”

Lisa's voice was loud enough for anyone to hear. Sayo wanted to ignore it, but not after making eye contact. She let out a quiet sigh, feeling her muscles tense as Yukina’s eyes met hers as well. They were cold, serious and too high an obstacle Sayo wanted to bother with. Maybe it was rude, maybe it was a little cold, but the third buzz in her pocket was far more important to her than whatever drama was beginning to boil. 

“Sorry,” she said as soon as she approached them. Lisa began to pout the moment she opened her mouth, but Sayo wanted nothing more than to get away from all distractions to contact Tsugumi and didn’t let it bother her. She was sure Lisa’s intentions were in the right place, but Sayo needed a break. A real one. “I must make a phone call to my parents. I haven’t spoken to them much since I left.”

Something in Lisa’s eyes told her she didn’t believe her, but she didn’t say anything in response and simply let her body relax, loosening her arms and shoulders. “Well, I won’t force you then!” she said immediately, perking back up like she hadn’t just looked angry at Yukina. “Go on, go on~”

Thanking the gods she had previously prayed to for looking out for her, Sayo quickly fled the scene, just barely hearing a loud “jeez!” come from Lisa before a laugh, but she didn’t think too much about it and hurried off to a secluded area in the southern parts of campus. The trees in that area were much thicker which reminded Sayo of a horror film, but there were benches around, she could hardly hear the other students and she was finally able to get some alone time. 

Unlocking her phone again, Sayo set her things down and immediately opened up the chat app where Tsugumi had sent her two more stickers of confusion before one of sadness. Seeing it made Sayo’s shoulders shudder. She didn’t like seeing Tsugumi upset - even if it was in sticker form. 

Plugging in her earbuds, Sayo hit the video chat option. 

It was blurry a little when Tsugumi answered, but after a few seconds her screen cleared up immediately, showing off the pretty face of the girl she longed to see. Sayo smiled, waving quietly while she watched Tsugumi hastily plug her earbuds in. Soon enough, Tsugumi was quietly watching her from her end. In the background Sayo spotted a few students of Tsugumi’s school walk by. 

“Hi,” Sayo said after a few moments. 

“Hi Sayo…” Tsugumi said hesitantly. Like always, her voice was gentle and sweet. It looked like she leaned forward a little, holding out her phone with outstretched arms, tilting her head with a soft smile. “I didn’t expect a video call…”

Sayo felt familiar guilt settle in her stomach before clearing her throat with a nervous smile. “I’m sorry, I forgot you were in school right now,” she said, covering her mouth with her fingers like she had just done something wrong. “Should we move to text?”

“No!” Tsugumi immediately replied, shaking her head fervently. Sayo jumped but didn’t mind the outburst - it had been so long since she had last seen her after all. “It’s been so long since I last saw you, I don’t want to waste it.”

There was definitely a blush on her face now, Sayo noted by how hot her face was becoming. Luckily nobody was around, so she allowed herself to sit there while her cheeks reddened and Tsugumi giggled. “I’ve been meaning to show you what my campus looks like,” Sayo said, trying to move past the topic of her embarrassment. “Right now I’m in the southern part of it, where there’s more forest than people.”

She switched the camera view on her phone and allowed Tsugumi to see her surroundings. Trees, tall and thin, and a dirt path that lead to international student dorms off in the distance. She hadn’t ventured that far as it wasn’t relevant to her studies. Tsugumi let out an excited noise at the sights. 

“How pretty!” she said. Sayo smiled. “You’re so lucky you get to be around all that fresh air…”

“It’s very quiet,” Sayo added. “Although it seems that won’t last if I’m in this club…”

Tsugumi hummed, still wearing a large smile. “Are you having fun? Are the others nice?” she asked, moving so she was leaning her back against the window. Sayo was about to quickly answer when she paused, leading to a hum of confusion. 

“I don’t know yet,” she answered, hearing the uncertainty in her own voice. “I like the concept, but the others seem to have such different visions… but the others are fine. They keep me occupied, I suppose...”

It was times like these she was grateful to have Tsugumi in her life. Misaki seemed to be a capable person to be honest with, but she only knew her so much, whereas Tsugumi likely had seen this coming from miles away and already had the answer. “You seem to be getting along fine to me, if you haven’t completely rejected the idea. I’m just glad you have someone like Imai-san around. Otherwise you’d hole yourself up in that dorm of yours and never come out.” She laughed at that last statement, causing Sayo’s cheeks to redden even further.

“I leave it to eat,” Sayo countered quickly. 

Tsugumi didn’t say anything in response, she simply kept her gaze on Sayo, who’s eyes lingered on her pretty pink lips. Looking around, Tsugumi nodded and bumped her forehead against the phone, causing the sound to rustle as the microphone on her earbuds bumped against her clothing. “I,” she began quietly, the sound of her voice making Sayo’s toes curl, “asked my parents… if I could visit you during summer vacation.”

Now _that,_ Sayo wasn’t expecting. Tsugumi’s summer break began in late July until the end of August. Given that it was April, it left them with three months. She felt the air around her beginning to thin as she thought of it. Despite the happiness that ran through her veins and urged her to accept without a care, the logical side to her demanded she try and reason with her. 

“This is your last summer while you’re in high school,” she said, watching as Tsugumi’s gentle expression fell for a second. “Are you sure you don’t want to spend it with the others?”

Her smile was back, though Sayo noticed it wasn’t as easygoing as it had been before. “I’m sure! It won’t be the whole time since I don’t want to inconvenience your schedule or club activities too much. I just…”

There was shake of her camera, followed by the sound of her finger slowly sliding across Tsugumi’s phone, touching Sayo’s face through the screen. “I miss you,” she said, this time her voice thick with emotion. Sayo clenched her jeans with her free hand. “It’s only been a month and I’m so… I don’t know.” She sighed.

Gulping quietly, Sayo wished she could drag Tsugumi out of her phone and into her arms. To reassure her their feelings were still so mutual. She figured she may as well say as much. “I feel very deprived without you here with me,” she said. Glancing around, Sayo felt relief that nobody was walking by. “The pillow I sleep with at night simply isn’t enough.”

This time it was Tsugumi’s turn to blush. Her laugh was gentle and genuine, replacing the distressed expression that was beginning to take over. Sayo smiled at the warmth coming off of her face. “Then I guess I’ll just have to make it extra warm for you at night!”

Her innocent statement had taken a completely different turn in Sayo’s ears, and simply drove Sayo mad with another wave of heat spreading from the top of her head down to her toes. The lack of response seemed to get picked up by Tsugumi almost immediately, for she also went silent with embarrassment. 

“I will have a look at my schedule then,” Sayo said with an audible gulp. “And I will let you know when the most convenient dates are. Perhaps you can see us perform at an event should we have something going on.”

“That would be so much fun!” Tsugumi said cheerfully. Her eyes then held a cute, teasing glint in them. “So you  _ are _ looking forward to being in this band?”

Sayo was floored. “I-I suppose. Well, I’m going to give it a chance.”

“Remember to just have fun,” Tsugumi reminded her. Just as she opened her mouth to say something, a pink flash suddenly appeared on her screen. 

“Tsugu~ Who are you talking to?!”

“Hi-Himari-chan! Quiet down!” came Tsugumi’s panicked reply, the phone turned upside down so all Sayo could see was the wall as the other girl held her phone against her hip. Sayo could remember Himari very clearly. One of Tsugumi’s best friends and the only one of her group who knew about their relationship. It wasn’t like they were in any danger and Sayo couldn’t have cared less if anyone found out, but Tsugumi was much more sensitive and easily flustered. Her friends would never let her hear the end of it.

Suddenly, the screen went bright as Himari had snatched Tsugumi’s phone from her grip, now wearing the girl’s earbuds with a bright grin. Sayo didn’t mind it, and waved to her. Himari was a good person. 

“How’s college?” she asked, avoiding all Tsugumi’s attempts at getting her phone back. “Tsugu really misses you, you know? Always going…” she sighed dramatically, expression dropping into a dazed one as she stared out the window before it was replaced by a toothy smile and a giggle. “Like that!” 

Sayo felt a small laugh come out of her throat. “Things are fine here. Thank you for taking care of Tsugumi,” she said quietly. Himari gave a dramatic salute, catching the attention of some wandering students. She couldn’t help but chuckle again when she saw Tsugumi’s hands trying to sneak around Himari’s shoulders.

“She told me she’s going to see you in the summer!” A gasp in the background had Himari laughing again. “Oh~ How romantic. You’d better take her to a fancy dinner and a walk on the beach!”

Sayo wondered if okonomiyaki and a walk to the only 7-11 for miles would suffice. “I… can try,” she said, lowering her eyes. She’d have to look at a larger map of the city on her computer later. Himari nodded again, and this time finally let Tsugumi take control of the conversation. 

“You weren’t supposed to tell her! Now I look desperate…” she huffed, playfully shoving Himari with her shoulder. There was a faint whine before Himari was waving at her and heading off down the hallway, leaving the two alone again. “Sorry.”

“For what?”

Tsugumi let out a few breaths, shaking her head. “For, y’know, pushing myself on you like that. Deciding to go and all. I should have asked you if it was okay first.” Sayo could clearly see the rims of Tsugumi’s eyes beginning to redden - signs she was going to cry. 

“I don’t mind,” she quickly said. Sayo panicked. She didn’t want to have Tsugumi wander the school on the verge of tears after they hung up, possibly garnering attention that would only make things worse. “Tsugumi, look at me.”

Shiny brown eyes, glowing with the tears beginning to form, looked up at the camera. Sayo wanted nothing more than to brush them away with her fingers. “I don’t mind it at all,” she repeated. Tsugumi nodded, blinking rapidly to keep her tears from spilling. “Please don’t think you’re an inconvenience.”

“Are you sure?”

Sayo nodded, making sure her voice was even. “I’m sure.”

A small sniffle, followed by a laugh so unlike her Sayo felt as though she had just been slammed across her chest by a steel hammer. Tsugumi lightly tapped the corner of her eyes to get rid of the lingering tears, letting the shuffling students behind them fill the silence before giving Sayo a familiar smile. 

She felt her face soften, giving Tsugumi a smile she rarely showed anyone. “I can’t wait to see you,” she said, so quietly she wondered if the girl had even heard her, or if she even said it at all. 

But Tsugumi heard. “Mhm. Three months is a long time, though…” 

“It’ll pass, if you busy yourself.” She hadn’t even noticed a month had passed since she arrived on campus. Three more would be nothing. 

The bell rang, indicating Tsugumi’s break was over. “Ah! I need to get going. Um, can I call you later tonight?” she hurriedly asked, whipping her head back and forth as the students shuffled back into their classrooms. Sayo nodded. “Yay! Haha, I’ll talk to you later then. And!”

The look she gave the camera was so sweet, so gentle and loving it rendered Sayo speechless. How could one girl be so utterly beautiful? “I love you,” she whispered. 

Sayo didn’t hesitate to respond. “I love you, too. Enjoy the rest of your day.”

The call ended, and Sayo leaned back with a deep breath. Tsugumi wasn’t wrong - three months was a very long time to wait for something she wanted so badly. But as she said herself, if all she did was make herself busy in that time, then time would pass without her even realizing it. She got ready to stand and head off back to her room to get her guitar when she stopped, fingers wrapping tightly around her phone. 

“It has been a while though,” she muttered, looking at the screen. Her excuse to Lisa wasn’t so much a lie than it was a quick excuse, she really hadn’t bothered to call or message her parents much. She wondered if they were worried about her.

Sighing, she resigned herself to the fact that if she didn’t call soon, then they would. It was likely them giving her enough space and time to adjust, but Sayo had already done that her first week.

Sayo scrolled through the small list of people in her contact list, and dialed the one labelled Home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The mini Tsugu army ready to attack can settle down now that they've had their fill of their Sayo. Just three months and they can reunite-!
> 
> I feel a LITTLE bad about not including the entirety of Afterglow, but I just like the idea that Himari alone protects Tsugu's secret and gives her advice/comfort about their relationship. She's definitely "my girlfriend's best friend that I kinda get along with but she'll rip me apart if I hurt her" material.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little later than usual since I was moving all my work equipment to a new office rip

Hikawa Sayo never had a hard home life. She got along fine with her parents, she had a roof over her head, good meals to eat, and her own room where she spent most of her time studying or playing guitar. Her father encouraged her hobby, bought her music magazines he came across while her mother always reminded her to do well in school so she could go to a good college. But overall they got along fine.

As she listened to the ringer, Sayo couldn’t help but grab onto her bag like she was about to tell them some kind of breaking news. She hoped one of them would answer. If they didn’t...

“Hikawa residence.”

Sayo let out a deep sigh. She forgot it was the middle of the afternoon and only her mother would be around to answer. “Hello mother,” she said, raising her voice to normal levels. “It’s Sayo.”

“Oh! Sayo-chan!” the woman on the other end yelled excitedly. The sound of her voice made Sayo feel a little guilty about not having called or emailed at all since moving. “I’m so happy you called!”

Sayo leaned back on the bench. “I’m sorry. I should have called sooner, but things have been a little busy,” she said.

“No, don’t worry! We were sure you would be busy adjusting to your new school. How is it? Are you liking it?”

Sayo hummed, crossing one leg over the other. Knowing her mother, the woman was going to have her on the phone for a while. She was glad her schedule for the rest of the day was empty. “I enjoy it. I’ve met a few people who have similar interests as well.”

They talked about the mundane of her college life, Sayo described her dorm and the thin walls, the dense forest that wrapped around the entirety of the campus and the lack of activity to do in Iwakura overall. All of it took about thirty minutes, mostly due to her mom having lots of questions she mostly had no answers to.

“How’s the food?” she asked with a chuckle.

“Not as good as yours,” came the answer the woman wanted. Hearing her mother’s laugh reminded her of Tsugumi’s - gentle and sweet, easy to feel comforted. The nerves that had built before she called began to disappear.

She checked her watch and felt her stomach grumble at the thought of having lunch. Her mother was going on about some new developments with her father, but all Sayo could think of was the menu, where the special for the day was some kind of french fry platter. Unhealthy, but she couldn’t resist feeling her mouth water.

Just as she opened her mouth to interrupt the conversation, her mom stopped herself. “Ah… have you… talked to Hina-chan at all? She seems to be doing well, although I keep telling the girl to stop staying out so late...”

She could have just pulled the trigger of a shotgun by such a simple statement. Sayo felt her world freeze over. While her mother continued to talk, mentioning the name Hina over and over and _over_ again, Sayo felt her hands go cold. The calm, warm atmosphere she had created for herself crumbled, leaving her exposed for frigid air to clawed at her skin.

“Oh?” was all she managed to force out of her throat. There was no change in Sayo’s tone. There was no shift in her facial expression. But the fingernails digging into her thigh couldn’t have displayed the whirlwind of emotions running through her head more clearly.

Hikawa Hina, her younger sister by mere minutes. She and Sayo were like Yukina and Maya when standing next to each other. Night and day.

Hina was an energetic girl who followed her heart, much like Lisa did. She was outgoing, loud and fearless when it came to saying what was on her mind, even if some of the words that came out of her mouth were downright cruel. Sayo, on the other hand, followed a logical path of thinking, kept to herself and was distant.

The one disruption in her otherwise normal life, aside from meeting Tsugumi, was Hina. The girl had a natural talent to do anything she attempted. A never ending cycle of success and accomplishments made things boring for her, resulting in her seeking out more things to do. Sayo, however, needed so much more time and effort just to take one step forward while Hina made several.

It angered her. So much so Sayo made the decision to completely shut her out, ignore Hina’s attempts at getting close and eventually move far away to a city she didn’t know just to get away from her. In Iwakura, there was nothing for Hina to take an interest in. Nothing for her to accomplish. Sayo made absolutely sure of that.

“Mother,” Sayo’s voice cut the air like thunder, rendering the story of how Hina managed to get a part-time job silent. Their parents knew of the rift that had grown between them the heavier Sayo’s frustrations toward her sister became. “It’s about time for me to go. Please say hello to father for me.”

She could hear the tired sigh from the other end. Their mother’s attempts at getting Sayo to mend the bond she had broken always fell on deaf ears. She loved her mother, she did. But all her life she just wished she could see things from Sayo’s perspective.

“I’ll make sure to do so. Take care of yourself, Sayo-chan.”

The call ended abruptly.

Feeling the dull ache in her chest melt away the further she walked, Sayo kept her mind occupied as she surveyed her surroundings. The paved path eventually dwindled down into nothing, until she began crushing pebbles and dirt under her shoes.

She ended up hitting a dead end that forced her to turn around. Granted it was a simple group of bushes and trees she could have slipped right through, but Sayo didn’t want to accidentally get lost. Thus, she ended her small walk and headed back, allowing the cool air brushing her cheeks to take the raging thoughts going haywire in her head. She took a roundabout way as her schedule was empty for the rest of the day, simply giving herself time to stop gritting her teeth and clenching her fists

Hina wasn’t here. Sayo had nothing to worry about.

By the time she got back and headed for the cafeteria, it was completely packed. Through the thick miasma of perfumes and colognes mingling in the air, the smell of fresh french fries made its way through and had Sayo’s stomach nearly scream in desire to be filled. The loud conversations, gossip and laughter made Sayo’s head hurt, but she endured it and took her lunch to go.

“Phew,” she whispered as soon as she was back outside. The day was beginning to end, and those who lived in apartments elsewhere began to head off while students like Sayo with nowhere to go mingled, grouping together under the trees and huddling on the benches to get a good look at each other’s phones.

Outside food wasn’t allowed in the dorm rooms (although they had fridges), and Sayo didn’t feel like going back so early. Now would have been a good time to seek out Lisa and have something to do. That thought had her automatically head to the music hall again, but a gaggle of fashion students standing around the entrance turned her off from the thought and she continued to walk until she was staring at the sports field through a tall fence.

It was fairly empty, with only a few students running around it in casual exercise outfits. Sayo sighed, feeling antsy. She had been begging for a chance to be left alone, yet here she was, getting exactly what she desired and wanting something interesting to happen. She sat on the bench facing away the field, deciding to simply eat her food in peace. However, the silence she so desired earlier began to make way for her mother’s voice to replay in her mind, telling her all about Hina’s accomplishments since graduating high school.

She felt her fingers tighten around her plastic fork.

“Oho, so you’ve come here to hide, I see.”

Sayo looked up with a giant mouthful of fries, locking eyes with familiar grey ones. Misaki, holding a giant duffel bag and a tennis racket, was standing at the edge of the path leading toward the field. How Sayo hadn’t even noticed when she was facing the path, she didn’t know. Swallowing quickly, Sayo wiped her mouth with a glare while Misaki searched her bag, completely indifferent to the embarrassing sight she had walked up to. “Hide? I don’t know what you mean,” she scoffed.

“Alright, let’s go with that,” Misaki answered with a laugh, tossing her a bottle of tea. Sayo caught it, making room for Misaki who decided to sit next to her, facing the opposite direction.

“What brings you here, Okusawa-san?” she asked curiously. Misaki was wearing the same outfit she had on earlier, with the exception of not having her hat or backpack on her.

Misaki sighed, leaning forward until she was resting her chin in her palms. “I was told there’d be a tennis club meeting in the field. It’s something to do-” that seemed to be a common theme with her, Sayo noticed, “- and it’s pretty good exercise. Also gets me out of having to take P.E., but as we can see, nobody’s here yet.”

She took a glance at Sayo, who kept her eyes glued to the buildings in front of her and stayed silent, not even bothering to feign interest. She leaned back, keeping her own eyes on the horizon. “Something wrong?” she asked.

“No,” came Sayo’s quick reply. She didn’t follow up with anything.

Misaki hummed, clearly not believing her. They stayed like that, watching the surroundings, listening as planes flew overhead, causing every leaf and twig on campus to shake.

Eventually, Misaki stood with a grunt as the sounds of people coming down the path broke their silence. “Well, I seem to see you around a lot. If you want to talk about anything, I’ll hear you out.” She tapped her shoulder with her tennis racket, lost in thought before she laughed. “But don’t expect me to give you advice, I’m no good with that.”

“I’ll keep it in mind.”

Leaving without another word, Misaki joined the people beginning to huddle in front of what Sayo assumed was the clubroom, as an older man with a whistle on his chest stood in the middle of them all before they headed up the stairs and into one of the two doors. Sayo, finished with her food, took that as her queue to leave.

She figured if Tsugumi was going to be coming, and Himari was expecting them to go on a _romantic date_ , Sayo would use the remaining time in the day to walk even further than she had gone with Lisa. Using her phone as a guide, she found a few restaurants that weren’t too far, as well as a bike shop. She wondered if she would have enough money for one.

* * *

Ignoring most of the houses and apartments brimming with college students, Sayo made her way down the road, following the narrow paths until the roads began to widen and cars were more frequent. It was a fifteen minute walk, and she began picking up the pace when she saw the lineup of bicycles lining the front of the store. Sayo looked at them all carefully when the only employee came outside, greeting her warmly.

“Hello!” he called, causing her to nearly drop her phone. Sayo nodded, staying silent. “Looking for a specific kind?”

She shook her head. “Not really. Just something I can use around the area.” A thought crossed her mind before she added, “Perhaps with an extra seat.”

The feeling of riding a bike with Tsugumi gently pressed against her back… Sayo flushed lightly at the thought of it.

The man, rubbing his chin as he looked over his merchandise, made a sound between a huff and a grunt. Sayo couldn’t tell if it was a good or bad thing, but he followed it with a, “I think I got something in the back. Wait just a second.”

He hurried back inside, and Sayo took a moment to finally look through her wallet. She had some bills her parents gave her, and after a quick check was just barely enough to pay for one.

A clatter, and the man rolled out a brand new black and blue painted bicycle. It looked just the right size, with a basket in the front for her things and a flat seat with pegs in the back for a passenger. The price tag on it was just a hair under her budget.

“Like it?” he asked with a smirk, as if he had hand picked it just for her. Sayo continued to look at it, but nodded when he repeated the question. After a careful mental debate, and at the cost of the employee thinking she was strange by eyeing her oddly, Sayo took it. He threw in a phone holder so she could keep an eye on the map while she handed him all her funds, only slightly regretting it.

As she rode off, Sayo let a small smile grace her lips at the thought of looking like a local. She followed the main road until she reached a large intersection, where there was another 7-11, but her eyes were on the small building across it. It was cute, and the advertisements on the outside reminded her immediately of Tsugumi.

Chateraise was its name. A small dessert shop nestled comfortably on the side of the road. She had passed by a teppanyaki restaurant and another serving eel, but none had caught her eye like that one did. It looked like something straight out of Tokyo, with it’s fully glass walls she could see inside, the lineup of desserts of all shapes and flavors. There were very few tables inside, but Sayo figured not many people visited anyway.

Nodding to herself, she pushed off to find the next destination, making sure to bookmark the place to come back to it later. She would make sure Tsugumi enjoyed herself thoroughly. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sayo deals with depression and bad thoughts by stuffing her face with french fries. 
> 
> She now has a bike! Like Sayo I'm already visualizing the romantic rides as Tsugumi leans against her. Agh be still my heart.


	8. Chapter 8

Two days found Sayo sitting in a fairly small room with nine tables of three people each, making her first music class the smallest of all she had attended. Sitting in the back with a school-borrowed laptop full of music programs given to each of them as soon as they walked in, she couldn’t help but finally feel like she was in university.

Despite what she expected, the classrooms she saw near her club room were intended for second-year students, while first years gathered on the first floor, at the very end of the hallway. The first year was supposed to cover the foundation and basics of music, understanding the structure of sounds and how to make music through the software on their computers regardless of what they wanted to specifically focus on.

It was exciting, but also a little overwhelming. Still, Sayo took it all in stride, determined to make the most with what she learned.

Majority of the class was spent covering the basics of what they would be doing over the course of the year, while the last forty-five minutes or so introduced them to the software they would be working with. It was more simple than Sayo had expected when she looked at the software Misaki used. Not that she was downplaying her ability,

“We’ll be using this software for all of your upcoming projects. You are, of course, free to use anything else…” the professor said, writing down the list of other brands that were similar. Nobody in the room asked any questions or interrupted with comments. “But we’re not going to worry about these for now,” he said, popping the lid on the dry erase marker. “What we do in the first year is come to understand music.”

Sayo leaned forward in her seat, chin propped atop her interlaced fingers.

“What we’re going to do is essentially train you, and train your ears. In order to make your music more attractive - or to spread music that _you_ think is worthy to others, you need the ability to perceive minute differences in sound expression. To do that, you must step out of the comfort of enjoying your favorite music, listen to a wide range of genres, and capture their characteristics.”

Sayo didn’t have a specific type of music she liked the most, but if pressed for an answer she would say rock. After all, the guitar was the star of rock music, something she had to listen to over and over. But she didn’t know how listening to other genres or picking up specific sounds out of them helped in bettering her understanding of how to create music she deemed “worthy” of sharing.

It seemed the face she was making (likely angry or confused) while she thought to herself caught the professor’s attention, for he soon pointed at her with the cap of his marker facing outward. “You. Er...” he snuck a glance at the seating chart, “Hikawa-san. Is there any issue?”

She jumped in her seat, suddenly very aware of all the eyes now on her. Sputtering an answer in her head, Sayo calmly looked at him, resting her forearms on the table. “It’s not that I have a problem,” she answered clearly. If nobody else was going to voice their thoughts, Sayo might as well. “How is listening to the differences in different genres relevant to creating our own music?”

It sounded like she was doubting the program, challenging the man with thirty pairs of eyes staring at him, but Sayo’s question was genuine. She didn’t care to learn about the nuances of pop or rap or anything that wouldn’t help her create the best sound she could get out of her guitar. It just seemed like a waste of time.

He looked confused for a second, almost angry, but eventually realization sifted through and he nodded, putting the marker down. There was a podium in the front of the room which he leaned on, looking straight at her. “Hikawa-san, have you ever heard, say, a rock song that was just _purely_ rock music?” he inquired.

Sayo furrowed her eyebrows, confusion settling on her features.

“What I mean by that is: have you ever really heard music that hasn’t borrowed or experimented with sounds from other genres? Nowadays it’s not so rare to hear electronic music, or pop characteristics in rock and make it work. Taking that step out of the mindset that you _must_ make your music sound a certain way, to broaden your creativity is what this class is for.”

The other students were silent, likely all snickering in their heads. Sayo continued to pour all her attention on the man in the front.

“You know, as the music industry changes... musicians, songwriters, composers - all of them are hoping to adjust to the needs of the listeners. Of course, most stay true to their vision and produce music they still love, but there’s that occasional change in style or adjustment to how they go about making their song. You can’t do that without knowing the fundamentals of how to go about it, otherwise it’ll fall apart as soon as you hit play. Does that make sense?”

It did, at least somewhat. Sayo never really did venture beyond instrumental genres like post rock as the guitar was always doing the leading. She made a note in her notebook to dive into the music world online when she was in her room.

Up front, her professor smiled as she made multiple extra notes, taking what he said to heart. “With that settled, I’ll be announcing the main project due at the end of the first term, so listen up.”

A main project? One that took a whole semester? The others in her class murmured to each other in surprise, causing him to clap his hands, the sound making Sayo’s ears wince and stunning the rest into silence.

“As it states in your syllabus, you have a presentation that displays what you’ve learned over the semester. By that, I mean you’ll be making your own original music. How you present it is up to you, but the only restriction you have is that it must be digital and must be created with music software.”

Sayo cringed in dismay. Maybe it _was_ a good thing Misaki had offered her assistance.

* * *

The three hour lecture, leaving them with the task of familiarizing themselves with their new laptops and digital workspace, finally came to an end. However, Sayo, carefully slipping her new Macbook into her bag, felt nearly a thousand times more refreshed than she did when walking out of her other classes. The other courses just didn’t seem as interesting.

She thought back to her conversation with the professor. To adapt to the changing music world, it was almost a requirement to test different genres and try to use their characterisics to make something new... There would have to be a lot more research put into it than she expected.

“Yo!” a hand tapped her shoulder as she sat on the stairs, the familiar sound of Maya’s voice making it easy for Sayo to avoid being surprised. The drummer, holding up her own laptop with a snicker, took a seat next to her and rested it on her thighs. “I didn’t think we’d have the same class together!”

“Neither did I…” Sayo didn’t hate the idea. But it was a little embarrassing that Maya heard everything. Still, she didn't bring it up and neither would Sayo. She crossed her arms with a thoughtful look. Maya let out a long, tired sigh.

“I’m no good with electronic music…” she said after a pause, hiding her face in her hands. Sayo felt relief that she wasn’t alone in her despair, but lamenting about it wasn’t going to get her anywhere. “I’m just glad we have until the end to learn how to use it all! I’m sure we’ll get it, but… it might take a bit for me to get used to.” Maya let out a laugh that sounded forced yet encouraging.

Sayo, while having made progress with Lisa, and a bit with Misaki, wondered about Maya. “Yamato-san, what brings you to this school?” she asked. It was a sudden question, but she did want to get to know her clubmates better. There really was no better time to ask.

“M-me?!” Maya asked, pointing to herself. Sayo nodded, looking at the wall off to the side as if somebody else was around them. Laughing nervously, Maya shook her head. “There’s not much to say, really! I mean, I get a kick out of performing maintenance and working on instruments, and playing on the drums just gets my heart racing like no other.”

Sayo nodded, a sign for her to continue.

Maya looked up at the ceiling, a small smile on her face. “It’s almost like a dream to be here. I’m actually really bad at socializing, but I enjoy being the support beam and keeping things in order! I’ve always just kinda helped people out, acting as a behind-the-scenes member. It’s always so exciting to watch it all come together. So when I heard there was a university actually training you in music production, I begged my parents to let me come here! Even though we couldn’t really afford it… ehehe.” She laughed and rubbed the back of her head like she had done something wrong.

“So when you graduate…” Sayo began.

Maya nodded. “Mm! I’ll probably do some sort of engineering, since I don’t really think I’m band material. I’ve always thought of a good gig working out not just because of the performers, but because of the people backstage working really hard to make sure it runs smoothly. We don’t get praise for it, but at least it feels good to know we pulled something off!”

It at least explained why she was so extreme when it came to seeing instruments in person - though she very much disagreed with her not being band material. Sayo thought it was strange but couldn’t find it in her to judge, not while she was watching Maya brimming with happiness and sparkles as she spoke about her aspirations. She stayed silent, wondering where exactly she wanted to go with her guitar. There were lots of new things she was learning alongside her new acquaintances, and the music course had thrown her a harsh curve ball.

They watched as the crowd on the first floor began to thin, as all the first year music students and fashion students collided in a mesh of bags and clothing of all colors. Eventually, when it finally cleared, Sayo stood, ready to leave when Maya let out a sound as if wanting to say something. She looked down at her, pressing the laptop against her thighs tighter.

“Ah- nevermind!” she called, waving her hand in front of her face. Sayo raised an eyebrow. She clearly had something in mind, but Sayo really had no idea how to get it out of her. Shrugging, she fixed the bag on her shoulder, but Maya made another sound, this time muffled as her hands clamped down on her mouth.

“Just say what you want to say, Yamato-san,” she sighed, reclaiming her seat. Maya jumped, throwing her hands off her mouth in surprise. This time the silence was a little more awkward.

“I was… just going to ask if you wanted to jam again,” she said, her voice taking on a soft, hesitant tone. Sayo didn’t think Maya could even produce such a small voice, given she was excitable and loud when they were discussing music. “Talking about it just really made me want to bang on my drums a little!”

“I wouldn’t mind. But is the studio not open yet?” She’d rather not waste her time carrying her guitar across campus only to be met with disappointment again. Maya hurriedly shook her head.

“Not this time! I’ve actually got the key from our advisor,” Sayo reminded herself she had yet to meet the person. “He said we’re free to use the space so long as we clean up and avoid breaking stuff.”

Now that was good news. She wasn’t sure how Maya got permission to use the entire studio, but if they were finally allowed to go inside she wasn’t going to complain. The only other class on her schedule for the day was a math lecture, but the temptation to skip yet again was far too strong. After all, she could just read up on it all in her textbook and it would be the same thing - tedious.

After promising to meet up with Maya and leaving the building to get her guitar, Sayo wondered just where her standards were going.

* * *

Somehow, when Sayo made it to the bottom of the stairs leading into the studio, she wasn’t surprised to see Lisa, tuning her bass with a concentrated look on her face, legs crossed and eyes focused on the small device attached to the head.

“I take it she caught you too,” Sayo said in a half-joking manner, snapping Lisa right out of her daze. She pulled up her strap to show she too had her instrument before they shared a smile. “Why not go inside?”

“I was…” Lisa bit her lip before sighing, the frown she wore marring her features. Sayo knew exactly where this was going, and had to think of a different topic to talk about when Lisa beat her to it. “Waiting for you!” It was a blatant lie, but Sayo wasn’t going to argue. She really had no intention of meddling in affairs between friends.

Opening the door, Sayo held it for Lisa, who cradled her bass like a child and hurried in. The doors that were previously locked were now all open, and Sayo couldn’t help but peek into the red door that had a giant monitor on the wall along with two speakers, a music program loaded up on the screen. It looked to be a room for digital music.

Maya was already inside, messing around with hooking up all the microphones around her drum set. It was much larger than the electronic ones she used before. Sayo had to do a double take when she walked into the recording booth. Lisa followed Sayo inside with a loud sound of awe coming out of her mouth.

“You made it! I found Misaki-san down here, but she had other stuff going on right now. I hope you don’t mind it being us three again!”

Sayo was a little disappointed, but didn’t let it show on her face. Given what her professor told her earlier, Misaki was a person who likely knew about various kinds of genres and beats - it would have been beneficial to see her adapt and include those sounds with theirs.

Lisa, having immediately set up her bass and finished tuning it, went off to look at all the other rooms now that they were opened up. The CiRCLE studio was only part of a bigger floor, but Lisa found that the other rooms in the hallway were more classes and an equipment room with all kinds of tools they could use. She was back by the time Sayo and Maya finished up, but her unnatural quietness after she described the rest of the halls made Sayo feel a bit uneasy.

The feeling of being in an actual studio, soundproofed and cut off from the rest of the world so they could be as loud as they wanted was comforting. Her room walls were paper thin and playing loudly right next to a classroom was nerve wracking, but here Sayo felt she could give it her all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sayo is like the protag of a dating sim, getting all the girls' backstories haha.


	9. Chapter 9

One thing Sayo thought she had was patience. She had since trained herself to accept she wouldn’t understand or master anything on her first try like Hina did. Years of forcing herself to just endure and wait things out allowed her to build patience unlike her peers.

But _this_ …

She watched Lisa’s playing as they played along to a video playing on Maya’s phone. It wasn’t a song she knew, and she had no idea how to play by ear, but she’d at least attempt it. Maya knew the drum parts pretty well, as the song didn’t include anything crazy from what she heard, but Sayo was completely lost, especially when the bridge came in. But she simply gave Sayo an encouraging nod, stopping occasionally to let Sayo hear the song more clearly.

While the two basically studied, Lisa was off in her own world, strumming the bass parts with relative ease. Sayo raised an eyebrow when the song ended yet again and she had yet to get past the first minute. She wasn’t even sure why she was trying to play a song by ear, but watching Maya follow the drums with ease made the impatience she had long since buried begin to boil over.

She couldn’t believe how childish she was being.

“Are you alright?” she asked, watching as Lisa continued to stare at her fingers as she strummed. Normally, at least from what Sayo had seen, she never bothered to look at her hands.

“I’m okay!” came the quick answer. “Just concentrating,” she lied. Sayo shot her a quick glance that very well demonstrated her disbelief, but she didn’t say anything more. It was a little annoying that Lisa was distracted and didn’t quite bring the energy she reserved for assaulting them with her hugs and touches, but it was hard to believe she was concentrating when her fingers were almost expertly hitting every note of the song.

She quietly cursed her incompetence. Even Lisa, as dazed and distant as she was acting, was able to discern and play the bass with ease. How Sayo loathed practicing with vocal tracks.

“Don’t worry about it, Sayo-san!” Maya said, spinning her drumsticks in between her fingers. She shot Sayo a bright grin. “You can’t get a song perfect in one try!”

“Right,” she mumbled through her teeth She was slightly worried to show her insecurities out in the open like that, but she also couldn’t help it. “Bitter” failed to fathom the depth of the emotions in her voice.

After a while, it seemed Maya completely caught on to the black cloud of annoyance and frustration that was hanging over her head and her drumming, almost a soothing background noise helping Sayo concentrate, came to an end.

“How about we just play something we all know, huh?” she asked with a laugh. Sayo sighed, but felt relief that her embarrassing performance could be forgotten. She would have to practice on her own.

“So, Sayo-san. Anything you got in mind?” Maya asked.

Sayo didn't realize that the question was addressed to her after a few seconds. “Not really,” she answered. Then a thought crossed her mind, and she pulled out her phone to open up her music playlist. “Do you know them?” Her finger pointed at a band that made Maya gasp. It didn’t surprise her in the least.

“Yes! Their stuff is so relaxing to play, right?!”

She felt herself smile at Maya’s enthusiasm. “In my case it’s more about being able to hear the guitar clearly,” she said as Maya began to play a random beat. It was slightly mesmerizing, watching her randomly come up with a melody. Sayo never had the urge to just play the guitar without having some kind of guide or tutorial in front of her.

Lisa’s bass hummed through the amp, and her cat-like smile was a little smaller, but there. Even if it seemed she was down in the dumps, she still could pull a mean improv.

“Can you play _Flying Carpet_?”

Sayo nodded.

“What about you, Lisa-san?”

“Huh?! Oh! Yeah,” she answered. Sayo wondered if Yukina had said something in particular to make Lisa so distracted. She was tempted to ask. It would have been a good idea, considering Lisa not paying attention and silently brooding in the corner was a hindrance on not only her but Maya as well. The way she repeatedly hit random beats on her drums basically screamed excitement.

“What’s gotten into you?” she asked, not quite unkindly. Lisa jumped, looking to her like a deer in headlights. Sayo could feel the slight guilt bubbling up in her stomach, but since she had already said it the way she did, there was no taking it back.

Lisa, however, didn’t seem to take it so badly. Giving Sayo and Maya a smile, she came closer to them. “Ahaha… sorry, I didn’t think I’d be so… _you know_ ,” she said. Sayo _didn’t_ know, but she wasn’t going to say anything. Instead, she turned to face Lisa completely.

“Is this about Minato-san?”

“Yuki- huh?! How did you know…?”

The urge to roll her eyes hadn’t been stronger. Sayo ignored it to keep her composure, simply shaking her head while Maya looked a little uncomfortable. After all, her only encounter with Yukina had been the moment she deemed their club a waste of time. While Sayo didn’t see as much more, she did remember the clear look of friendliness on her face as Lisa rubbed on her like a deprived kitten.

“Because you’ve been down and quiet since the last time I saw you - with Minato-san.”

At first it looked like Lisa was trying to come up with an excuse, but the longer it took her to say anything, the less Sayo and Maya were to believe her. In the end, she let out a deep breath and took a seat on the only available chair near Maya’s drums. “It’s just,” she began, finally giving Sayo relief that they could concentrate when she was done. “I just thought it would be fun for her to join us, you know… have a vocalist and cover other stuff.”

“If she doesn’t want to, then she shouldn’t have to,” Sayo said. She surely wouldn’t have joined if she didn’t truly want to, not matter how hard or loud Lisa begged her to. Yukina was likely the same way. But if Lisa continued to pester her, then the more likely she was to come back in the same state she currently was.

Lisa nodded. “I know! I know that, but… she won’t really get a chance to sing much in her main course so… I thought it’d be nice,” she brought her bass closer to her chest like a child would a teddy bear.

“Then it’s her loss,” Sayo bluntly said. Maya sputtered behind her.

“Ahh… maybe it’s not my place to say, but…” the bespectacled drummer said nervously, pushing up her glasses. “Maybe she’d prefer going solo? There are lots of vocalists who don’t participate in bands, so...”

A rap at the door followed by it opening made their heads turn. Almost as if she had been listening the entire time, Minato Yukina waltzed in with a flick of her hair, striking golden eyes meeting with Sayo’s cool green.

She slowly approached the recording booth, making eye contact with Lisa who jumped to her feet almost immediately. Sayo corrected her posture, cool gaze taking in Yukina’s form. She stood straight, kept her eyes focused and didn’t even so much as flinch under Sayo’s watchful eye.

“Lisa.”

“Y-Y-Yukina?!”

Lisa likely would have completely dropped her bass and broken Maya’s spirits if it weren’t for the strap keeping it levelled. “What are you doing here?! I thought you said you weren’t coming!”

Yukina brushed a lock of hair behind her ear, scanning each and every part of the studio. She ignored Lisa, but her eyes ended up coming back onto Sayo. There had to be a reason for it, but every time their eyes met, Sayo couldn’t help but steel herself, shoulders broadening. At some point Sayo wondered if she was even breathing.

“So!” Lisa said, clearly sensing something brewing in between the two girls. “What did… you come here for?”

Yukina, finally, looked away and peered over Sayo’s shoulder to Maya, who visibly shuddered.

Turning to Lisa, Yukina shot her an inquisitive look. “You’ve been begging me nonstop to come and see you perform to get a feel for this… band. So I’m here to do just that.” She took it upon herself to sit in the seat Lisa left open, crossing her arms and legs in a stiff pose that told them she was waiting.

Sayo wasn’t going to comply so easily. “If you don’t want to join, why must we prove to be worth your time?” The way Yukina walked in and demanded they cater to her wishes really didn’t sit right with her - Sayo had no reason to waste her time or efforts on someone like that and she wasn’t about to start now.

Yukina merely shrugged, and Lisa looked like she wanted to say something but didn’t have the heart to say it. Surprising, but the more she watched Lisa around Yukina the more she began to piece things together - she was that readable .

“Then I don’t join. There are more ways to utilize vocals without joining a circle.”

Sayo was about to throw another snarky comment when Maya’s drums interrupted her thoughts. The drummer looked ready to pass out with how much sweat was building up on her forehead, but she gave Sayo a big, nervous smile.

“Why not just try it out, Sayo-san?” she asked, obviously unsettled by Yukina’s piercing gaze. “We really don’t have much to lose, and if all goes well we get a vocalist. Pretty good deal if you ask me!”

She was right - she was right, yet Sayo’s stubborn nature began to manifest in her head. Of course they had nothing to lose, but if they did happen to play a song for her and Yukina thought them not up to her standards they walked away with embarrassment - the feeling of not being good enough. She thought about taking a long ride far from Chateraise if that were to happen.

Lisa looked a mix of excitement and nervousness, but she still happily clung to Yukina’s shoulder, holding her head close to her chest. Yukina, face still unreadable, made no move to keep her away. Sayo had to avert her gaze, wondering if the two knew about the concept of privacy. Unless they just happened to be friends who _really_ liked physical contact…

Shaking her head, she made eye contact with Lisa, who graced her with the most pathetic pair of puppy dog eyes she had ever seen.

Which meant she was doing a good job at convincing her. Months of Tsugumi using that damned tactic had softened her when they were friends, only increasing when they began dating when Sayo was at her weakest.

Sighing, she pressed her fingertips against the bridge of her nose and shook her head. “Let’s get this over with then. However,” she shot Yukina a stare she reserved for people who ate at her patience and couldn’t help but give a condescending smirk her way. “It should only be fair to have a chance to hear you sing as well. You can’t expect us to just assume you’re good because you _say_ you are.”

Yukina’s eyes turned icy, and Lisa backed off immediately as soon as she stood. She only had to take two steps and she was a foot away from Sayo. “Oh?”

They looked like a pair of wet cats that found themselves trapped in one small room.

Lisa and Maya shared a look, both of them clearly thinking the same thing.

_Oy vey…_

“All right, all right,” Lisa intervened with a firm voice, clearly having enough of the silent feud going on. She patted Yukina’s shoulders, pulling her away from Sayo before the catfight began. “How about we do this: we choose a song to cover, practice our parts and come together in, say, two weeks?”

Sayo, eyebrows furrowed, lifted her eyes to meet hers. Yukina looked at her with an equally deep stare, one that made Lisa’s smile twitch. With both of them suddenly turning on her, it was like watching a poor chick who had wandered into a fox’s den. Maya, still sitting in the back, could only purse her lips and watch the chaos unfold. It was likely anything she said would completely bounce off of them.

“Two weeks is far too long,” Yukina said with authority. She crossed her arms and without missing a beat, uttered: “One.”

“Fine! One!” Lisa said, throwing her hands into the air. “What song do you want us to learn?”

Sayo scoffed, turning her head. “Why must _she_ pick the song?”

“Do you have an idea in mind?” Yukina asked. Sayo’s mind was far too busy strangling itself for opening her mouth that she didn’t answer, and Yukina took that as her answer before moving on. “There is a band I’ve been studying lately. The song is titled _Screaming_. There are two guitars playing at once…”

She and Sayo made eye contact again, this time with no malice blocking their path. “But I can work with you on that,” she finished.

Lisa clapped her hands before Sayo could even open her mouth to protest, clearly happy with the results. Maya let out a loud sigh, expelling all the awkward atmosphere her body had soaked up. “I hope I can do this…”

“With that out of the way,” Lisa began, strumming her bass with no real rhythm. “We might as well see what we’re working with. Yukina, play the song for us~!”

Yukina connected her phone to a wireless speaker she had in her bag, looking at them all with a serious expression on her face. The moment she hit play and they heard the first five seconds, the peaceful truce Sayo thought she had with Yukina burned up immediately.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she deadpanned as Lisa and Maya stared at her with saucers for eyeballs, her voice completely drowned out by the intense guitar chords.

Yukina wouldn’t look away from her the entire song.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would have uploaded on Friday but I got really sick and just could not gather the energy to write, I apologize.
> 
> Flying Carpet is by Hyakkei. I like listening to them while I write. 
> 
> The song Yukina is going to have them practice and cover is Screaming by BAND-MAID (one of my favorites). You can find a guitar cover on Youtube but the vocals and other stuff is still super clear. It's a really intense, Roselia-like song from a band I'm sure Yukina would be completely weak in the knees for, so I chose it.


	10. Chapter 10

Hazawa Tsugumi was a simple girl. A third year high-school student with no real dreams for the future or special talents leading her anywhere. Her heart was set on the present, doing what she could in the moment and hoping for the best. That mindset got her pretty far - to the point she was sitting beside the student council president, although she had to admit most of the work was piled onto her shoulders the rest of the council wondered why she hadn’t been appointed. 

As the pressures of the future - choosing what she wanted to do and wanted to be got heavier, so did the thoughts lingering in her head. Teachers and counselors would remind them over and over to think hard about it, but Tsugumi could only draw a blank each and every time. 

She sat at her desk and daydreamed, her clean and tidy notes becoming more confusing and condensed her friends slowly began to stop asking for them, yet she couldn’t help her mind wandering off to find comfort in the only space in her heart that would never go away: Hikawa Sayo. 

Her senior by just one year, Sayo had decided before graduation to sign for any university far enough away from her hometown, and had moved to Kyoto the first chance she got, leaving behind her family and small group of acquaintances, as well Tsugumi herself. 

She had been fine with it, initially. Sayo was in search of finding her identity - something that made her stand out from her twin sister Hina. If being around her insecurities did nothing but hurt her, Tsugumi wanted Sayo to get a fresh start, to feel like she was free. She had seen and heard Sayo play the guitar and she had  _ talent _ ; Tsugumi wanted to see her make something of it.

Tsugumi would replay the moment they met over and over in her head as she stared up at her bare ceiling, the stars twinkling outside her open window, bringing a chill that couldn’t compete with the hollow feeling in her chest. 

Hina had dragged her to their house for shared student council work when Sayo walked in from school, uniform different but hair and eyes strikingly similar. 

They exchanged greetings, Tsugumi focusing on the way Sayo’s eyes softened in courtesy, but met Hina’s with almost completely indifference. The rest of the evening, Tsugumi could barely concentrate on anything but the way Sayo’s eyes were just a little more green than Hina’s, her long teal hair, white complexion, slender waist…

Safe to say, it was nearly love at first sight. Tsugumi ran home with her cheeks red and thoughts flooded with the softness of Sayo’s voice, wishing she could say her name just  _ once more _ .   


Hina continued to bring her over, the good-natured Tsugumi not finding it in herself to say no, especially not when it gave her a chance to see Sayo more often than she expected. For two months things continued like usual, Tsugumi and Hina sitting at the table with paperwork to discuss, Sayo walking in after a while with a short greeting and small talk before she headed off into her room, and Tsugumi following her every move. The beat of her heart was so fast she wondered if Hina noticed, if Sayo could hear it. 

Eventually, the student council ran out of things to do, and Tsugumi found herself being approached by Sayo one day with a request to show her how to make cookies for Hina’s birthday. 

“You’ve mentioned to Hina before that you can make sweets, correct?”

Tsugumi wondered if the gods were playing a trick on her. 

Baking sweets morphed into visiting the store for trinkets and gifts, to visiting parks on their day off, to having dinner together after school. Himari and the rest of her friends wondered where her free time suddenly went, and while Tsugumi trusted them with her life, she wanted to keep their blooming relationship a secret just a little longer. 

At the end of the year, five months into their friendship, Tsugumi gathered the courage to finally confess, pouring out all the fuzzy feelings that invaded her chest. Sayo had taken her hand then, shaking and sweaty but her grip firm and small smile soft, so unlike the usual angry expression she wore. Their first kiss of many was awkward and stiff, but so wonderful. 

Tsugumi decided to tell Himari then, making her promise to keep it a secret.

“But why?” Himari asked, completely surprised by the suggestion. “I’m sure they’d like to know too, Tsugu!”

Tsugumi had a hard time answering why herself. 

It wasn’t until after Sayo left that things began to unravel. Tsugumi found herself staring longer at the window of her classroom, she found her hand smoothing over the bump in her skirt pocket where her phone lay, wondering when the next message would come. She would join in conversations less and less until Himari was prompting her to speak, giving her knowing looks. 

“Hmm~” Aoba Moca would hum, pressing her chest against the back of Tsugumi’s head. The library had felt more silent than usual, and Tsugumi realized she was reading the same line for an hour. Moca hadn’t said anything more, but the comforting hand on her head, fingers brushing through her hair in slow strokes made her feel a little better. 

The fact that Moca didn’t know what was bringing her down yet still reached out to let Tsugumi know she was there made her stomach twist in a guilt so strong it almost made her feel sick. If she told Moca, would she understand? Would she just laugh at her? She debated it for days.

It had only been a month and Tsugumi was a complete mess. Sayo was making the most of her college life - making friends with the same interests, joining clubs and taking that step forward… while Tsugumi was left behind, wondering why it felt like the world was coming to an end. Himari assured her she would get used to it eventually, but did Tsugumi truly want to? 

Their calls ended abruptly sometimes, Sayo would be too busy to look at the messages she sent, and Tsugumi would bury her face into her pillow, wondering why she was being so childish. She should have been happy to hear about her girlfriend taking those steps to being the person she wanted to be, but the more she heard about it, the more her chest would ache and she would feel out of breath. She didn’t know why it hurt so bad - why hearing such good things made her feel like the universe was pressing down on her and making her feel so  _ small _ .

Four years really was such a long time…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're getting closer to them seeing each other again, so I thought it'd be nice to see from Tsugumi's perspective. I can't keep bullying the poor bean forever. Someone stop me.


	11. Chapter 11

“Tsugu…”

“I know, Himari-chan.”

Tsugumi tapped the rim of her mug, watching the untouched tea ripple and dance before it settled. They sat in her family’s cafe after it closed, Himari coming in as she usually did to rant and let out whatever steam managed to collect in her head before the conversation drifted to Tsugumi. Her parents were quietly cleaning up in the kitchen, leaving them to talk to each other in private as they always did.

Himari sighed, resting her chin in the palm of her hand. Tsugumi gave her a weak smile, one that wasn’t returned no matter how much Himari wanted to. “You really should tell Ran-chan and the others, you know? They hate seeing you like this...”

Tsugumi nodded. She should have. She really should have and she wanted to - but for some reason, the moment Tsugumi felt the words on her tongue, a force so strong it made her want to throw up hit her, paralyzing her. It wasn’t like she thought Ran, Tomoe and Moca were bad people, not at all. 

She really couldn’t understand why it was so hard. They were people she trusted with her life, people she wanted to grow old with. Yet she couldn’t even stomach the idea of telling them about her being in a relationship. 

Himari reached out to pat the back of her hand, offering a supporting smile after a few moments of silence. The clink of plates and mugs being inserted into the dishwasher helped get her mind in order. 

“Are you ashamed of it, Tsugu?”

“Huh?”

Himari, who usually was the life of the party and waved around her airhead flag over her head wherever they went, was giving her such a mature, motherly look it almost felt like she was talking to a different person. 

Rubbing her fingertips on Tsugumi’s skin, Himari leaned forward a little. “Are you ashamed of you and Sayo-san being together?” she asked. Tsugumi could feel her face drop and eyes widen quite clearly before she vehemently shook her head, looking almost angry at the question. Himari offered a grin of support, her fingertips drawing small circles on Tsugumi’s hand. “Then? What’s the problem?”

That was the root it: Tsugumi didn’t know. She tipped her mug back to take a large gulp, letting the taste of coffee beans and sugar calm her down. “I’m...” she said with a deep breath, feeling her lips tremble a bit, “Just not sure…”

She knew Himari wasn’t trying to force anything out of her - she actually exceeded Tsugumi’s expectations by keeping quiet about it for as long as she had. Now, it seemed the comfortable bubble Tsugumi had surrounded herself in was beginning to crack, and she had no idea how to prevent it from shattering. 

“Maybe,” Himari began, like a mother would when giving advice, slipping her fingers in between Tsugumi’s to give her a supportive squeeze, “You should take a break.” 

The way Tsugumi’s face morphed into absolute horror, like Himari had just suggested something completely out of left field made her want to laugh. 

“Not like _ that _ ! Just… a break away from what you’ve been doing.”

“What do you mean?” Tsugumi hadn’t been doing anything too strenuous on herself lately; the cafe was never too busy, her role in the student council was fun and engaging, and her homework was always done and put away before dinner… there wasn’t anything in her schedule that made her overwork herself. 

“Tsugu, you really can’t think we haven’t noticed that you haven’t been sleeping lately, can you?” Himari sighed, nonchalantly drinking her coffee while Tsugumi looked down at her drink in embarrassment. Not waiting for a retort, Himari let her index finger drift towards Tsugumi’s nose, where she poked the tip of it. “Think about this: how did you feel when you saw me doing…what I did last summer? Do you remember?”

The last year was a completely blur to Tsugumi, having been caught up in her feelings for Sayo it was like the rest of the world hadn’t mattered. But she did remember a very specific incident involving Himari that almost lasted the whole summer. 

She grinned, just a little. “I remember,” she said, brown eyes glazing over as she replayed the memory in her head. “You heard Tomoe-chan saying she preferred smaller girls and set out on that crazy diet to lose weight.” 

Himari nervously laughed, cheeks going red. Sleeping very little so her body “wouldn’t absorb so many fats at night”, eating one or two things for lunch and making herself miserable for weeks. Tsugumi had oozed worry every single moment she looked at Himari, who looked like she was about to completely collapse and die before her very eyes. She remembered very clearly the worried look on Tomoe’s face as she watched Himari lose energy day by day, left in the dark by the others who didn’t have the heart to tell her.

She blinked. Twice. Himari leaned into her hand further, a very knowing smirk on her face. 

“That’s how we feel right  _ now _ , Tsugu,” Himari said, rounding the table to scoot next to her friend. Tsugumi made room, not resisting when Himari looped her arms around her neck for a very awkward sideways hug. “You can rely on us. And I think if you worry Ran any more than this she’s going to explode, I’m not kidding.” The warmth radiating off her made Tsugumi feel at ease, letting her sink into Himari’s chest. They sat in silence for a while, listening as the last of the dishes were being put away and ingredients for the next day’s pastries were being organized. 

Tsugumi could feel her eyes misting over as Himari’s soothing touches and back scratches continued to silently tell her she was there. It was such a rare side to her, but one that wasn’t unwelcome. She felt her arm wrap around Himari’s waist in a tight hug while she hid her face in the crook of Himari’s neck. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. 

“It’s okay!” Himari answered with a grin. “You’re our  _ Tsugu _ , we have to look out for you! Now…” She let Tsugumi go, still wearing the warm smile on her face, “Let’s figure out a way to tell the others, okay? Do you think you can do it?”

Tsugumi looked down at her knees. “I…” she clenched her apron with both hands, but nodded. “I can. It’s… it’s  _ them _ , so I’ll be okay! I can do this!”

“Yay! That’s the Tsugu we know!”

They hugged again, laughing at how awkward it was to hug sideways, but Tsugumi couldn’t ignore the feeling of something returning in her chest - making her feel warm and comfortable and  _ strong _ . She could do this. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My favorite trope is the best friend who supports their friends but won't hesitate to snap them out of a funk.
> 
> I'm still not quite 100% yet so I really apologize for the short Tsugu chapters. Next time we're going back to Sayo's POV and I'll make sure they're normal length.


	12. Chapter 12

Sayo’s fingers must have been as completely raw as they felt, but she didn’t have the heart nor the patience to look. Her eyes, usually so sharp and focused, could barely take in the sight of her laptop screen, displaying the tab she was currently practicing. For all Sayo knew she was staring at a foreign language, everything was so blurry. But the notes were already imbedded into her head, she just needed the muscle memory to actually pull it off. 

Unfortunately for her, it wasn’t as easy a task. 

She dropped her guitar on her bed, head pounding like someone had used it for baseball practice. The world looked blurry, and she could hear the faint thump of the wall as her neighbor hit it with her knee, likely fast asleep. She couldn’t remember if she had dinner, or if she was just experiencing a strange lucid dream, but the moment her foot touched the floor Sayo completely fell apart. 

Holding her head as the rap of the door caught her attention, she heard a quiet beep from outside followed by the face of the dorm advisor peeking through the crack of the door. “Hikawa?”

“Present,” she mumbled, closing her laptop. The woman eyed her curiously, then her eyes drifted to the guitar carelessly thrown on the mattress. 

“While we do have a music division here,” she sighed, tapping something on her tablet before resting a hand on her hip. “But be sure to respect those around you. I don’t want to waste time dealing with paperwork for noise complaints, got it?”

Sayo, eyes closed and trying her best to swallow her tongue, can only nod. “Yes ma’am,” she says tiredly. The woman tapped a few more things needed for the daily checkup and hummed as she left, loudly closing the door behind her. Sayo let out a small laugh at the hypocrisy. 

Frowning, she reached to touch her guitar, fingers red and guitar pick somewhere on the floor after a frustrating hour of trying to get something right. After Yukina had thrown them off their groove with a sudden intensive task needed to somehow impress her, Sayo was given links to websites containing every note she was supposed to memorize and master within a week. The look on Yukina’s face, as though already deciding she wasn’t worth her time, infuriated her. Who was she to walk in and make demands like she was their leader? 

However, while she was fuming and ready to show her up and force herself to practice, Sayo was also completely aware of how utterly _ impossible _ it was to actually pull it off. She couldn’t just master a whole song of this level within a week. 

She took a seat at her desk, a few textbooks opened up despite Sayo not reading a single word in any of them. At the rate she was going, she’d turn out to be another Misaki within a month - though she wasn’t completely opposed to it, as much as Past Sayo hated to admit. 

Rubbing her temples, Sayo decided to take that second step into becoming more Misaki-like and left her room to get something to drink. 

It was still pretty early in the year to be hearing cicadas, but as she stepped out of the dorm building it was like a tsunami of crickets, all hiding within the thick bushes that secluded the campus from the rest of the city. A cool breeze rustled the loose sleeves of her t-shirt, making goosebumps spread across her arms. There were quite a lot of students still awake, judging by the lights still on behind the curtains in the windows, and by the groups of students quietly hanging out wherever there was space. 

Sayo’s feet took her to the entrance of the convenience store, watching the student employees joke around as they stocked items. It was too chilly to indulge in something cold like ice cream, but there were always options for hot food items, the sight of some freshly fried chicken on display begging her to fall prey to them.

* * *

Ten minutes and one loud “come again!” later, Sayo emerged with a plastic bag full of a variety of chips, a bottle of tea and a box with fried chicken inside of it, cheeks flushed red at her blatant lack of self-restraint. 

Still, as she bit into her food and the oil, salt and meat danced on her teeth and tongue, Sayo could feel the pain in her head fading, getting a chance to relax. The cool air and near silence of the campus put her at ease from the noise she was stuffing her ears with for… she couldn’t remember how long. 

Setting down the plastic fork in the now empty box full of crumbs, Sayo opened her tea and took a long swig. It was refreshing. “Haa,” she sighed, placing it on the ground by her feet. It was a much needed break, Sayo realized, feeling her head clear and the frustration that had built up in her shoulders melt. Granted it was nearly midnight, but still a nice moment to herself that didn’t involve a million thoughts running in her head. 

She had an urge to call Tsugumi, but the chance she was asleep grew higher as it got later. One embarrassing sticker message later, Sayo was leaning back on the bench, listening to the rattle of the passing train that wouldn’t come back for another twenty minutes. 

What  _ was _ it she wanted out of her university? Her only reason for attending was to get away from her sister after all, and while she was, for lack of a better word, enjoying her time with her guitar and Lisa and her music course lectures, there wasn’t anything she specifically wanted to gain from it. 

Did she want to be a famous guitarist? Join a real band, go out and do gigs? It sounded interesting, but was she cut out for that kind of life? Sayo grew up with the freedom to do and be what she wanted, yet her serious nature took her on the course of a diligent, obedient student who didn’t really have much going for her besides academics. Sayo never really developed an interest in anything, not when Hina simply took the same interests and in trying to have something in common with Sayo, made her look like a complete fool resulting in some disastrous outbursts. 

She took another sip of her tea, letting her thoughts wander. The day she saw her guitar in a window, Sayo figured it was different, unique enough to keep Hina away - something only she could have for herself. She practiced, learned chords and how to read notes and listened to all kinds of rock that would finally sever her from Hina’s shadow, finally show their parents they were different people with different hobbies. 

It worked, and she was finally in college. But throughout all her lessons and hours of practice, not once did Sayo think about what she wanted out of it. If she wanted anything at all. 

She looked down at her phone. And Tsugumi… 

Sayo loved her. Tsugumi was the only one who ever took a moment to really look at Sayo, who really took an interest in Sayo  _ just because _ . The only one who could understand the thoughts running through Sayo’s head even when she couldn’t. It felt nice, how special Tsugumi treated her, how her smile would change and grow when their eyes met, how she would lightly tug at the ends of Sayo’s long hair when they hugged. Tsugumi was never afraid of telling Sayo how much she loved her, and said it often enough that the words became easier and easier to say, to the point Sayo wanted to say it all the time. 

And yet not once did Sayo consider a future with her. 

She quickly tore open a bag of chips and threw a few into her mouth, the loud crunch creating a nice filler for her thoughts. Maybe stress eating would become her new hobby. 

“I thought I saw you - that hair is recognizable anywhere. You dye it?”

“If you consider eumelanin a hair dye, then yes.”

Sayo and Misaki smirked at each other, the upcoming DJ climbing the narrow road to where Sayo sat, grey eyes somehow brighter in the dark. She wasn’t sure why Misaki was always around when things got confusing, but it wasn’t an unwelcome presence. 

Grunting and dropping her backpack to the ground, Misaki took a seat next to her, smelling lightly of salt and dirt. “What brings you out here at this hour?” she asked, pulling at her shirt to loosen it. Misaki had quite a boyish way to dress, not too far off from Sayo’s style but a lot less coordinated. She looked comfortable, at the very least, and Sayo had no room to judge when she herself was in a loose t-shirt and leggings. 

Sighing, Sayo figured it was no use trying to keep things from Misaki who seemed a little too perceptive. “We have a…  _ guest _ , in the club who wants to test us,” she said, feeling the wrinkles on her forehead again. Misaki helped herself to one of Sayo’s many chips, the smell of shrimp slightly rank and distracting. 

“Continue,” Misaki urged with interest, tossing a triple layer of snacks into her mouth. 

“Minato-san is - well, I’m not quite sure  _ what _ she is. Professionally talented? She hadn’t even picked up an instrument yet I could just feel…” Sayo frowned, then let her stiffening body relax with a weak groan, clenching her hands together in her lap. She looked at Misaki, whose gaze was focused on the glimmering pond not too far from them “I could tell that she is no amateur.”

“Is that a bad thing?” Misaki asked, kicking her feet up to sit cross legged on the bench. Sayo shook her head. 

“It would be extremely beneficial to have her influence improvement,” Sayo said, tapping the plastic bag sitting between them with her elbow. “But it also feels like she’s mocking us by being around. Imai-san even said she was going to be taking a different course until the last minute - and that somehow rubs me the wrong way.”

Misaki set her chips down and dusted the pink crumbs off her shirt, sighing in what sounded like content. “Hmm… it sounds like a handful,” she commented lowly. Sayo nodded in agreement. The crickets said all she needed to hear from Misaki, who simply sat by her in silence. She had already warned Sayo ahead of time that she wasn’t quite apt for giving advice, but it was sort of nice to just have someone to listen to her without trying to tell her where she was going wrong or trying to steer her in a certain path.

“Handful is an understatement. You’re lucky you’ve avoided her so far, Okusawa-san.”

“I can always go to the club room when nobody’s there, though it sounds like I’ll eventually cross paths with her.”

They shared another knowing look, smirks growing on their faces. It felt slightly wrong, to be talking about someone behind their back like that, but there really was no other way for Sayo to just  _ vent _ . She didn’t actually think Yukina was a bad person. Slightly pretentious and arrogant sure, but there was something about her Sayo couldn’t quite pinpoint that bugged her when she looked into those gold eyes of hers. The issue was figuring out what it was. 

“It makes me wonder,” she said, wondering why she was still talking but not willing to stop either. The crickets seemed to be getting quieter, making the thoughts in her head louder, the darkness parting for her to reach into the depths to find what it was she was looking for. “If I’m frustrated for the wrong reasons.”

“Why’s that?”

Sayo didn’t have an answer. 

They sat in silence for a little while longer, Misaki casually scrolling through her phone, small yawns escaping her mouth every so often while Sayo opened another bag of chips. Then, a loud ring interrupted them, Misaki nearly jumping off the bench like a rocket. 

“Ah, sorry,” she said, her voice sounding a little more energetic than usual. Her finger slid across the screen to answer, and she stepped far enough away that Sayo couldn’t hear her. She looked down at her own phone and was surprised to see it was already one in the morning. 

Her fingers no longer felt like they were on fire, but she also didn’t have the motivation to return and go back to practicing. She clenched the bag in her fist, ignoring how she was crushing the food inside. 

_ Maybe ev- _

“Sorry about that,” Misaki interrupted her thoughts, approaching her again. She looked pleased, though Sayo wasn’t going to mention anything. Her backpack was swung over her shoulder, indicating she was going to leave. “I’m gonna head to bed now. You probably should too, if you wanna make it to your first class in the morning.”

“How responsible. Though I doubt I’ll see you there,” Sayo responded. Misaki let out a slow laugh and tapped at her phone some more. 

“By the way, if you ever want to, you know, do this again,” she said, holding out her phone with what looked like her user ID to chat. Sayo memorized it after reading it aloud a few times, but still took a moment to enter it into her app for the friend request. “See ya.”

“Good night.”

She watched Misaki walk off but stayed put on the bench. Green eyes looked up to the clear sky, where millions of stars were twinkling above. Any other night, Sayo would have admired the sea of lights. They only served to remind her of the amount of things weighing on her shoulders; some staying constant and noticeable, others completely hidden away. 

It was almost three in the morning when she returned to her room. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am finally back from vacation~ I spent a lot of it thinking about this story and how things will unravel. I feel I have a better grasp on how I'll take things.  
> Iwakura is also bigger than I expected though still small compared to other cities. I have a bigger perspective on the city now so expect some more off-campus adventures in the future.


	13. Chapter 13

Mornings didn’t come easy for Sayo, whose brain could not function before the hours of ten, or even noon. But that didn’t stop her eyes, heavy and dry, from opening upon hearing the faint chime of an incoming call. 

Normally she’d keep her phone on vibrate or silent overnight as to not disturb her sleep (as it was at the moment), but the immature side to her couldn’t help turning up the volume on the off chance that Tsugumi would somehow call her while she was asleep. And, as luck would have it, she was. 

“Hello?” she answered quietly, voice thick with sleep she had to clear her throat. The sun had yet to come up, and with her curtains shut the room was blanketed with a dark blue hue, making it hard to keep her eyes open. “Tsugumi?”

“Good morning,” came a groggy voice, followed by a cute yawn. Sayo fingered her blankets, wondering if Tsugumi would materialize in her bed if she wished for it hard enough. “Sorry for calling you so early…”

Sayo shook her head, letting herself sink into her not-so plush pillow. “Don’t worry about it. Is there something wrong?” It was not only unnatural for Sayo to be up so early, but also a little strange for Tsugumi to be awake before the sun even came up. It had to mean something was wrong, right?

“No! Not at all.” Tsugumi’s breathy laugh, full of sleep like Sayo’s voice was, was quite possibly the most adorable thing Sayo ever heard. “I just felt like hearing your voice.”

She winced. The last time they spoke was almost a full week ago. Sayo, busy with practice and homework, couldn’t find ( _ make _ , Sayo corrected herself) time in her day to spend a moment to even update Tsugumi on how her days were going. “I’m sorry,” she quickly apologized. “I haven’t called you at all lately…”

“It’s okay!” Tsugumi was just as quick to diffuse the incoming wave of apologies, her light laughter making Sayo’s heart pump even harder. “I figured you were pretty busy, so I thought I shouldn’t have bothered you.”

Sayo swallowed, her throat dry and scratchy. She tried to clear it, but felt like there was a ball stuck that would not allow her voice to pass through. Tsugumi sighed on the other end - though the sound made panic rise in the back of Sayo’s mind. Was Tsugumi simply tired? Or was there something else underneath it all that she just couldn’t see?

It was far too early to be paranoid. Sayo buried herself further into her warm sheets, wondering if she was experiencing a really bad dream. But the light of her phone, and Tsugumi’s contact photo were evidence enough that she was definitely in reality. Tsugumi stayed quiet while she thought, wondering what words were appropriate for this kind of situation. 

Tsugumi was her first girlfriend, after all. 

“Um, Sayo?”

Tsugumi’s voice brought her out of her thoughts, and Sayo almost winced at how distracted she was being. Wasn’t she always looking forward to these calls? Perhaps it was too early in the morning for Sayo’s brain to process anything. 

“I’m sorry,” she coughed. “You know it’s difficult for me to think this early.” It was an easy out, but not too far from the truth. She heard Tsugumi laugh again, and spread her free arm across the mattress with a comfortable sigh. What she wouldn’t give to have Tsugumi in the space next to her. “I’ve been thinking. About your visit.”

“Ah! Y-yes?” The excitement bubbling into Tsugumi’s voice couldn’t go unnoticed, and it made Sayo smile a little. At the very least she sounded more upbeat, and that was all Sayo could ask for. 

Sayo swallowed, glad to not feel the ball stuck in her throat anymore. “I’m just… really looking forward to it.” Her voice wavered and she could feel her face getting more red as the seconds ticked by, waiting for Tsugumi to respond. 

“Me too.”

She could hear the smile in Tsugumi’s voice. She wondered, not for the first time, what she did in her previous lives to deserve such a wonderful person in her life. 

Their conversations drifted to topics that were less heavy, with Tsugumi eventually lulling her back to sleep and bidding her goodbye when she had to leave for school. All Sayo could remember was clutching her pillow tightly in her arms, heart feeling full before the darkness consumed her again. 

* * *

“I can’t believe I was late to my lecture…”

Sayo stared at her late breakfast in disappointment. She was  _ trying _ to not let the habit of skipping classes get to her, but it was also extremely easy to just let herself be free of restrictions. Every day she would remind herself to be a better student, only for the next day to come and no progress being made. Would Tsugumi still think she was still a good  _ person _ ? 

“C’mon, isn’t this the time for us to just enjoy ourselves?” Lisa laughed across from her, setting her phone facedown on the table. She, too, was becoming used to skipping class. Sayo wondered if the band club in particular was a place for delinquents to gather. “Besides, if we just pass our exams and get the final projects done we should be in the clear, yeah?”

“I guess,” Sayo sighed in resignation, taking a long sip of her tea. “So long as I prioritize those assignments…” She averted her eyes, hoping Lisa would catch on to what she meant. 

Lisa gave her a knowing smile. “You know, it wouldn’t hurt for you to loosen up, Sayo~ It’s really not a bad thing to focus on your club activities.”

Sayo knew that. She had seen more than enough students hanging out with more game consoles and sketchbooks than textbooks in their laps to understand university was more of a playground than it was a studious place. And Misaki seemed to be getting along just fine with  _ being _ . But it didn’t mean Sayo needed to be like them. 

It was just… tempting. 

“In any case,” she said, preferring a change of topic. “After today I’ll be able to have peace of mind regarding all of that.”

“Ahh, yeah! Yukina’s really looking forward to it,” Lisa happily said as she tipped her paper cup in Sayo’s direction. “She’s been talking about it almost all week.”

Sayo huffed. “I’m sure,” she said. Just the mention of Yukina seemed to make the food in Sayo’s container look unappetizing. The long nights of practice, trying over and over again to get her fingers to cooperate with her brain were quite unpleasant, and she could hardly remember what she did in between the long hours of staring at her laptop. The fact that she hadn’t spoken to Tsugumi all week without even realizing it also left a bitter taste in her mouth. 

With a long and tired sigh, but also a confident mind, Sayo followed Lisa down to the studio where they were to meet up with the others.

“Hey Yukina!” Lisa called as soon as they walked into the recording booth. Sayo was surprised to see her already there considering her rather dramatic entrance last time, but quickly masked her shock with a cool stare. Yukina’s face, ever unchanging, greeted her in the same manner she always did. With silence. 

If only Sayo possessed the talent to let go of her inhibitions in a way Himari did…

“You’re here,” Yukina said, voice low. Lisa excitedly nodded. She then looked to Sayo, who was busying herself with taking her guitar out of her case. A quick glance had Yukina look away. They were lucky Lisa was around to at least create some sort of conversation. “When will Yamato-san be arriving?”

“Hmm… I think she’s in class right now?” Lisa responded, checking her phone’s clock. “She’s usually running around by now, so she should be here soon.” 

Sayo strummed her guitar absentmindedly, watching as Yukina and Lisa began a hushed conversation. As much as she tried, she couldn’t ignore the butterflies fluttering about in her stomach, and simply acknowledging them somehow made it worse. Sayo wasn’t even sure what she was nervous  _ for _ \- Yukina’s approval? Approval of what? It wasn’t like Sayo had just picked up the guitar yesterday, and the past week had proved she had drive to play… that she  _ could _ play. 

She stared at the body of her guitar, feeling like time had stopped. What exactly was she looking for, here? 

“Sayo?”

Biting her lip, Sayo hid her hand behind her guitar to grip the hem of her cardigan. Why did this question make her feel so queasy? She could almost feel all control in her legs disappear, and felt the world was spinning when a hand in her face brought her back to reality. 

Lisa looked up at her with a concerned gaze. “Are you okay?” she asked. Sayo took a step back and brought her hand to her forehead - why was she so hot? “Sayo, are you not feeling well?”

“I’m fine,” she nearly snapped, turning her head away. She could feel Yukina’s eyes on her but for some reason couldn’t meet her gaze. Sayo had no idea what to do. Luckily, everything came to a halt as Maya stumbled in, a messenger bag that was stuffed to the brim flopping about. 

“Sorry I’m late!” she yelled, barging into the recording booth as if she was late for a final exam. “I just couldn’t stop asking questions and lost track of time, ehehe!” Maya dropped her things semi-neatly on one of the empty seats and headed to her drums, letting out a deep breath as she sat down and tinkered with the microphones surrounding her instrument. 

Lisa gave Sayo another look of worry as she headed back to where her bass was, sliding her fingers down the neck with a comfortable sigh. “Are we ready?” she asked. Yukina nodded, focus entirely on Sayo, causing a cold chill to run down her spine. 

“I’m ready!” Maya excitedly answered. She was likely too flustered in her entrance that Sayo’s aura of doubt was lost on her, but it was likely for the best. The fact she was more energetic even with Yukina around was a good thing. 

She let out a deep breath, ignoring how it felt like the ground was sinking underneath her. Positioning her fingers on the correct strings, Sayo nodded. Yukina turned around despite no microphone being in the room, and for some reason Sayo felt more comfortable staring at her back. 

“Then let’s begin,” Yukina coldly said from the front. 

Sayo counted her breaths, and could hardly hear what she was playing over the sound of her erratic heart. Compared to the comfortable beats as she was talking to Tsugumi, the ones pumping in her chest were overwhelming. 

Three, four, five… 

As soon as the sixth second passed and Maya’s drums joined in, it felt like someone had just dragged her out of the ocean seconds before drowning. Lisa’s bass supported her chords, the vibrations from the speakers muffled her pounding chest. 

And even without a microphone, Yukina’s voice was  _ powerful _ . It wasn’t quite as rough as the original vocals, but she sang with a passion Sayo had never seen. Yukina hunched over, swung her arms during the vocals, stomped her right foot when she yelled a certain verse… she was treating it like an actual performance. At some point Sayo felt like her hands had gone still, completely taken aback by what she was listening to. 

Sayo listened to every strike of Maya’s drum, every strum of Lisa’s bass and every word coming from Yukina’s mouth. She could hear the discrepancies, mostly coming from herself, but for the first time since being dragged to the club by Lisa, compared to every mini practice session they had, their sound finally felt alive. 

The final words couldn’t have made the smirk on her face bigger. 

_ I believe this is beginning of my new self _

As soon as the song stopped, Sayo let out a loud gasp of air, taking deep breaths to calm her racing heart. Maya and Lisa were in the same boat, faces covered in sweat and cheeks flushed. 

Yukina didn’t turn around, and kept her arms at her sides while staring straight ahead. Sayo couldn’t tell what kind of expression she was wearing, but she didn’t quite care as much as she did when they began. 

“You have a long way to go,” Yukina bluntly said, completely ruining the atmosphere. Sayo could feel the frown on her face. “Your guitar is off, the drumming was overwhelming, and the bass wasn’t strong enough.”

Sayo was nearly gnawing on her cheek. She knew her playing was adequate at best - it just didn’t feel right when  _ Yukina _ in particular was the one saying it. 

“But you have the potential to be better. From now on I expect better than this.”

“Wait! Yukina - are you saying..?!” Lisa cut herself off, letting a large smile take over her face. It was surprising to see her so energetic when Yukina had completely stomped on her performance, but Yukina didn’t bother humoring them any longer. 

She walked out of the recording booth without saying anything, and Sayo could have sworn she saw a small smile stick out between her silver locks of hair. 

“Yukinaaa!” Lisa called, nearly tripping over the cords spread across the ground in an attempt to chase her. By the time she got her bass situated, Yukina was long gone. “Aah! She can be so stubborn…”

“I-I guess this means… we’re good?” Maya nervously asked, nervously pounding at her bass drum. It matched the rhythm of Sayo’s heart, still recovering from the roller coaster of emotions that flowed through her. 

Sayo shook her head, letting down her arms with a sigh. She needed to take a seat. 

“I suppose.”

She knew she could do better. Yukina was an annoyance, and would likely squash any confidence she had in her playing every single chance she got, but Sayo knew she needed her. 

Maybe Lisa’s words earlier were right. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I started playing Fire Emblem Birthright and got distracted last week oops.


	14. Chapter 14

As she rode her bike down a familiar road, passing the dessert shop and more residential areas, Sayo couldn’t have felt more content. The warm breeze that brushed her bangs back, and the sound of the tires scraping across the pavement calmed her. It was the first time in a whole week that she had left her dorm room, trying over and over to get the song right, forcing herself to stay up because she had  _ one more chord _ to memorize.

She could smell families cooking dinner, leaving their doors wide open to let in the fresh air while giving back the smell of a home cooked meal. Just the smell of homemade curry was enough to make Sayo’s stomach growl. The cafeteria food was decent enough, but it couldn’t match up to something made from scratch. 

Unluckily, Sayo didn’t have access to a kitchen - and even if she did her cooking skills were nearly nonexistent. 

“If only I hadn’t spent all my money on this bike,” she whispered at some point, trying hard to ignore the hunger pangs that were beginning to get distracting. There were some hidden away cafes tucked in between houses and businesses, but one look at their menu prices outside and Sayo was pedalling away with her tail between her legs. 

She didn’t have a particular goal or destination, but it was nice to finally get out and breathe in some fresh air and she spotted some interesting places along the way. A hidden museum, tons of shrines, some local stand-in eateries that were less than ten feet wide and only serving to make Sayo even hungrier. 

She turned to the south and followed the river, watching as the cars began to appear more frequently, and more pedestrians were around. Iwakura Station was a few minutes walk, but Sayo was content simply watching the scenes unfolding around her. It was quiet, with only the wind brushing her eardrums and the occasional employee shouting their specials. 

It felt less like Sayo was in the middle of nowhere the farther she ventured, but she still felt incredibly out of her element. Unlike Tokyo, where things were just constantly happening and not a single thing stayed the same for too long, Iwakura was the least likely to have anything extravagant happening anywhere. It didn’t make it boring, but Sayo paced herself and took her sightseeing slow; if she saw everything too quickly, she would eventually find it dull. Sayo wasn’t a party animal, but she did enjoy being able to go out to do things if something happened to come up.

Especially if Tsugumi were to come, prepared to see only the best the city could offer.

Stopping at an intersection, she took a moment to look over the rail, catching the sounds of the river as it slowly flowed south - it was more like a stream than a river, but it was loud enough. She set her bike against it, leaning forward to get a better look. She could see the train tracks leading out of the station, hundreds of power lines that loomed over the businesses and houses by mere inches…

There were trees that flanked the river, with tiny buds poking out of the thin branches. Sayo closed her eyes with a smile, wondering how much Tsugumi would enjoy the view during cherry blossom season. The two of them nestled under a large tree, a picnic set up around them cooked by Tsugumi herself, playing with the scattered petals. Sayo's heart warmed as she imagined Tsugumi's hand in hers, soft laughter and giggles being breathed into her ear... 

The longer she stood still and daydreamed, the more Sayo could feel the fatigue settling into her body as it relaxed. It had been incredibly nice, but having to wake up at the peak of dawn from a phone call was not something Sayo wanted to get used to. Hopping back onto her bike, she sighed at the fact she couldn’t afford dinner and headed back to campus, ready to fall on her bed and just sleep.

* * *

She locked up her bike at the entrance just as the sun finally set and pulled her bag out of her bike basket, grunting when it hit her hip. However, before she could even take a step forward, she was met with golden eyes she normally only met in the studio. They glowed even brighter in the darkness. 

“Ah,” she blurted, genuinely surprised to see Yukina rolling in her own bike. “Minato-san.”

“Hikawa-san, good evening.”

Not wanting a very awkward encounter, especially considering the week of hell Yukina - Sayo herself - had put her through, Sayo nodded and walked around her, blushing furiously at the loud growl coming out of her stomach as she did so. She hoped Yukina would ignore it, but the small chortle coming from over her shoulder had Sayo whipping her head around to catch Yukina hiding her smile behind her hand. Just that sight alone caught her more off guard than Sayo already was. 

“I-”

Yukina regained her stoic expression with a shake of her head and took the lead, clearly wanting Sayo to follow her. “Come. I’ve been meaning to speak with you anyway and this seems to be a good time.”

Fifteen minutes later she was standing in the middle of the campus convenience store watching as Lisa, behind the counter, was trying to drown Yukina in bucketfuls of candy. Sayo wandered the aisles, poking at whatever she thought looked good but couldn’t afford with a heavy heart while she heard Yukina (or rather, Lisa answering to Yukina) speak at the counter. It wasn’t as late as the night she and Misaki spoke, but late enough that no other student or faculty had walked in for the whole ten minutes they were there. 

And then, with a loud gasp, Lisa shouted: “Sayo can totally work here!”

“Huh?!”

It was then Sayo found herself staring at a hot bowl of oden (in the spring?) sitting right in her face while Lisa and Yukina observed her every move. “Is this another one of your tests?” Sayo asked, not intending to sound so confrontational but also too tired and hungry to use a filter. 

“No, no!” Lisa said, quickly pushing the steaming plastic bowl in Sayo’s direction. “ _ Yukina _ here,” she jutted out her elbow as if to bump Yukina’s arm with it. The stern-faced girl didn’t so much as flinch. “Mentioned something about you needing money and wanted to know if we had an opening,” Sayo narrowed her eyes, wondering how Yukina somehow knew. 

“And, well, we do! So if you wanna start I can let the boss know. He’ll let you start immediately if you want.”

Lisa’s cat-like smile could only grow wider as Sayo’s cheeks got redder, hands slowly reaching for the food she desperately needed. With a low hum and a nod, Lisa was running to the back with a loud, “Boss~!!” and Sayo wondered if the bowl would have enough room for her to drown in it. Instead, she chose to stare right at Yukina, who was leaning against the counter with her arms crossed. 

“Minato-san, I appreciate the concern but how exactly did you know I was… in a pinch?” A pinch that lasted a whole two hours, but one nonetheless. Sayo would have been lying if she said she hadn’t been worried about what to do the next day. 

“Your bike model,” came Yukina’s quick reply. Somehow it made Sayo suck in a breath. She didn’t elaborate, and Sayo wasn’t sure she wanted her to - not if it meant having to admit she bought the two-seater model specifically to ride around town with Tsugumi - though knowing the little she did about Yukina, Sayo was sure she wasn’t going to. 

She stuck a boiled egg into her mouth, watching carefully as Lisa’s shadow got darker and darker until she stuck her head out with a high thumbs up. “You can start tomorrow!” she said. Sayo blushed mid-bite, just thinking about having a part-time job made her slightly nervous. 

“Thank you, Imai-san,” she coolly answered as soon as she swallowed. Yukina nodded with a small smile in Lisa’s direction and snatched a few pieces of candy off the counter before following Sayo outside. The cool night air helped chill her reddening cheeks. To add to her schedule of classwork, guitar practice and her circle activities, Sayo was throwing in a part-time job… but it would help, if only to fill her stomach. Her parents had already poured enough money to send her to college, the least she could do was support herself by eating properly. 

She eyed Yukina curiously, wondering what the girl was doing still following her around. “Minato-san, if that was the extent of what you wanted I’m ca-”

“Are you looking to gain something here?”

Yukina’s sudden question made Sayo’s lips tighten into a straight line. She could feel herself squinting, silently asking Yukina to elaborate. The question was something Sayo herself had been asking - and every time it only served to make her lip hurt from how hard she had to bite down the frustration.

“I’m not sure what you mean,” she chose to answer, appetite completely vanished. They couldn’t have been more than ten feet away from the convenience store, but given how tall the aisles and logos on the windows were, Lisa wouldn’t even be able to see the tops of their heads.

Yukina flicked her hair, a wave of silver that could have made the moonlight reflect off of it. Under any other circumstance Sayo would have marveled at Yukina’s natural beauty, exuding an aura of elegance no person on campus could compare to. 

But at the moment, she could only feel her blood simmer as her eyes held that aggravating arrogance.

“I’m asking if you have a clear goal in mind while you’re here. Your playing is accurate, but that’s all it is.”

Sayo’s eyes widened, and she hadn’t even felt the oden bowl slipping from her grasp until the hot liquid splashed all over her shoes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep getting distracted by fire emblem and other video games. I must be stopped.


	15. Chapter 15

“Your playing is accurate, but that’s all it is.”

Sayo bit the bottom of her lip, but refused to say anything. She was absolutely certain the look she was giving Yukina was on par with how she looked at Hina when she managed to one-up her with little effort. Of course, Yukina took it all in stride.

“I can almost hear the self-doubt you have for your guitar. As if you don’t trust it.”

Another curve ball. It was like Sayo was being taken on a roller coaster ride that kept going up and never actually took that final dive. She blinked away the fog in her vision, watching as Yukina’s small smile got a tiny bit bigger. “What?” She was too tired for this.

Sighing, Yukina crossed her arms. “When I listened to you today, aside from the usual hiccups from an amateur,” so the quips were continuing, “There was something else in your playing that I noticed. You can hit every note and play a song to perfection if you practice enough. But it lacks… personality.”

Sayo couldn’t react negatively to that, but it also wasn’t something she didn’t already know - nothing Yukina said was new to her. Sayo narrowed her eyes and decided to steel herself. “So what are you trying to say, Minato-san?”

“Is there a reason you’re in this school?”

Green eyes looked away from her the moment the words came out of her mouth. There was only one reason she was in Kyoto to begin with, but Sayo wasn’t exactly sure she wanted to share. Still, it seemed like Yukina wasn’t _trying_ to put her down. Sayo was quickly coming to realize how Yukina worked - it didn’t mean she liked it though.

Huffing, Sayo stuffed her hands into her pockets and looked away at a group of art students using each other as portraits. “Since I was young,” she began, staring straight ahead and avoiding even looking at Yukina through her peripherals, “I’ve always had my twin sister beat me at everything, copying me… besting me even in things she had just started the same day. Guitar is the one hobby she had never taken up and so I took the chance to learn how to play it.”

“I see.” Yukina gestured to a familiar bench, the same one she talked to Misaki on. Sayo couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. Once they were situated, Yukina crossed her legs and flicked her hair behind her again. “So it’s not something you felt passion for.”

Sayo rubbed her eyes, feeling sleep creeping up on her like she had never felt. But somehow it was making it easier for her to open up - either that or Yukina was just that good at making her talk. Why was she even having a conversation with the last person she would ever tell this to anyway?

“I do… have an interest in it.”

_Did she really?_

For just a moment she looked down at her hands and furrowed her eyebrows. The one thing that bothered her every time she picked up her instrument, the frustrations of watching Lisa and Maya pick up on rhythms that flew over her head, being amazed by how easily Misaki used digital software to create music…

It wasn’t quite jealousy, and she was sure she could pick up on those techniques and skills as she practiced too, but there was always something ticking in the back of her head, waiting for the right moment to burst. Had it always been there? What was it that Sayo felt when she watched the others having fun playing their instruments?

For a moment they were silent, Sayo quietly musing to herself and dealing with her conflicting thoughts while Yukina patiently waited for her to keep up with the conversation.

“My father,” Yukina suddenly said, looking up at the dark sky, “Is a retired musician. He is the one who taught me how to play guitar, and gave me vocal training - he also inspired Lisa to take up the bass. I would imagine it would have been difficult to pave our own paths without him there to guide us.”

Maybe that was what prevented Sayo from enjoying what she was doing. Was she really all that focused on the end goal? Yukina didn’t give her a second to think or question much before she was speaking again.

“However, as grateful as I am to him, it wasn’t he who decided where I took that guidance.”

Sayo gave her a confused stare. Yukina smirked, crossing her arms with a determined look on her face, her smile no longer holding any of that arrogance Sayo thought she was only capable of making. It made something click within Sayo’s brain.

“You pursued music because you came to love it,” she answered with a thoughtful whisper. Yukina hummed in affirmation.

“Though you started playing the guitar to set yourself apart from your twin,” Yukina said, dusting the invisible dirt on her arms, “You made the choice to come to a music school and pour all you have into learning new songs - you wouldn’t have done all of that if you didn’t actually love what you do.”

Sayo stared at her hands again. Her fingertips had been on the verge of splitting open and bleeding from how hard she was pressing them into the fretboard - she had lost hours of sleep, dedicating that time to try and meet Yukina’s expectations of her.

Was she really doing all of that just to set herself apart from Hina? How easy was she to read that Minato Yukina, a girl who had known her for all of ten minutes since they met, was able to completely analyze her and tell her something about herself Sayo didn’t even realize?

“You said my guitar had no personality,” she said quietly, almost as a way to counter what Yukina had just told her. “And that I sound like I don’t trust it. Why is that, Minato-san?”

“That you will have to figure out on your own. I can’t tell you how to improve in that aspect, but it’s easy to tell when you’re second guessing yourself.” Yukina stood and looked down at her with a friendly grin. Small as it was, but she seemed a lot more approachable now that Sayo had spoken with her. “I will say you have potential, and I’m looking forward to seeing you meet it.”

With that, she was off. Back into the convenience store to likely chat with Lisa, leaving Sayo to sit and thoroughly absorb their conversation.

"By the way..."

Sayo looked up and saw Yukina turning her head over her shoulder. "I've said it before, but I can play the guitar as well."

Sayo didn't need her to continue to know what she was insinuating. "I shall take you up on that offer sometime, if you don't mind," she said to Yukina's back as she walked away.

She didn’t want to hear that she had talent for the guitar - not when she knew she didn’t and demonstrated she was far from being decent. But to hear that she actually had potential, that she was subconsciously enjoying what she was doing… that she could be taught how to be better...

Sayo pulled out her phone and nearly winced at the time on the screen. It was almost time for the daily check in at the dorm so she couldn’t wander around too long. Still, she took a moment to breathe, opening her message app to type out a message to Tsugumi.

_I know I’ve made the right decision. Thank you for all your support._

That night, she spent it dreaming of standing on stage, wearing the brightest smile she had ever worn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a tough one to write which is why it took so long. I ended up making it short so I could get it out of the way ejflf
> 
> Also lol I'm sorry I bamboozled you into thinking Yukina was going to roast Sayo. They have to become friends at some point after all.
> 
> Sayo's problem isn't 100% solved, because knowing you're working on a goal is different than actually having one. Baby steps, Sayo!


	16. Chapter 16

For a while, things continued as they normally did. Sayo showed up to her job in the afternoons, got trained by Lisa and got pretty accustomed to it pretty quickly. The small effort needed to speak to customers helped her form the confidence needed to ask questions during her music class - which she made a habit of actually attending. She still wasn’t quite sure how to tackle the issue of creating a whole song, but she and Maya would share ideas while the drummer became fascinated by the various options and settings hidden within the software.

“It’s not something I can physically fiddle with, but it’s still exciting to use, right?!” she would say often, and Sayo got accustomed to her excited rants that it didn’t bother her as much.

It wasn’t until Sayo was lounging in the tub of the dorm bathroom that she realized nearly a whole month had passed and she hadn’t even noticed, and it was now the beginning of June. The club was running somewhat smoothly, if a little rough due to Yukina’s constant cut-ins to tell them when and how they were poorly performing. She was advised to continue practicing that first song Yukina had them play, which helped Sayo train her muscle memory. Her days were full of things to do and see that she didn’t notice time had even passed, and she chuckled quietly to herself as Tsugumi’s words seemed to once again ring true. She really couldn’t have felt more content, and the more she busied herself, the more another month would pass and she would be able to finally see her girlfriend.

She sat in the club room on an afternoon she didn’t have to work, staring at her laptop screen and wondering how she could make three basic notes last a whole three minutes when the door slowly opened to reveal one Okusawa Misaki. “Ah. Hey, Hikawa-san,” she casually said, taking off her cap to run a hand through her hair.

“Hello,” Sayo answered. Misaki was a mysterious person. She was straightforward about everything if you asked, but tended to keep to herself despite being a pretty good resource of advice. She didn’t exactly _help_ or tell Sayo where she should go, but she asked questions that likely didn’t cross Sayo’s mind or prodded for Sayo to consider thinking deeper about what was troubling her.

Misaki powered on the other fans in the room, pulling her shirt open with a sigh. “I see you’re working on making music,” she said, unzipping her DJ equipment to make sure everything was still intact. Sayo let out a sigh of frustration and leaned back in her seat in response. “It’s not as easy when you first start, but you’ll get the hang of it.”

“That much is a given, but I’m still unsure of how often I should be practicing with it,” Sayo said, giving Misaki a glance. “How do you go about composing something from nothing?”

“It’s less that I make something out of nothing, and more like…” Misaki hummed, taking a seat across from Sayo with her eyes on the ceiling. “I might hear something musical when a drink comes out of the vending machine, or hum a random tune that I build off and it ends up just coming to me.”

Sayo was impressed. Misaki was, whether she liked it or not, a real musician. To create such sounds - just _creating_ in general - out of nonsense she heard on a daily basis was truly a result of having talent. “I see,” she said. “Then it would best to tackle it by simply… creating sounds, than focusing on the kinds of sounds they are.”

“You’d have less of a headache that way,” Misaki answered. “I’d assume if you were to strum your guitar without sheets to guide you, a melody would eventually just come together, right? It’s the same principle.”

Sayo wanted to retort that no, it wasn’t quite like that just yet, but decided to stay silent. Still, Misaki wasn’t wrong either. If she just made the notes, eventually they would come together and she’d know where to go. It didn’t mean she would get a hang of it, but she still had quite a while until it was due.

“Thank you, Okusawa-san,” she said, crossing her arms with a smile. “I can see how you’re able to skip all your classes now.”

“Ah… aha,” Misaki gave a weak laugh, though the blush on her cheeks couldn’t be hidden. “Graduating wouldn’t mean much if I didn’t put in the effort though. I still keep up with studying in the evening.”

Sayo raised an eyebrow at that. “So what is it you do in the daytime?” If Sayo were the one being questioned it likely would have annoyed her, and she really had no business being so nosy, but she couldn’t help feeling curious.

“In the morning I’m supposed to have tennis practice, but I’m usually still asleep at that time so I make up for it by jogging a bit at night or asking someone in the club if they’d like to help me train a bit. Otherwise I’m at home studying or working on some music until then.”

Sayo nodded. It seemed to be a very carefree schedule, but considering how the screen looked completely complicated and jammed with all sorts of effects when Misaki showed her work, it was likely an all-day process. But it also sounded like a very… lonely schedule. Sayo at least had Lisa pestering her, and Maya’s company, while a little too much at times, was enjoyable enough. And of course she had Tsugumi in her pocket to speak with at any point during the day.

But if Misaki didn’t seem bothered by it, Sayo was going to at least respect that and not ask. Something was tugging at the back of her mind but she couldn’t remember what it was, so she decided to quietly continue what she was working on, this time with a clearer head.

The software had dozens of preselected sounds and kits ready for her to use as she wished, which made it a lot easier when it came to putting sounds that complimented each other together. But there were so _many_ options, and Sayo wasn’t all that great at determining the kind of music she wanted to even produce. She could barely understand what was going on with her physical instrument!

“Don’t think too much about it, Hikawa-san,” Misaki drawled from across the table. “Like I said you’ll find it difficult in the beginning, but once you get used to using the software it’ll eventually come naturally.”

 _Natural_. Hina’s face flashed in her head for a brief moment, making Sayo tighten her lips. Misaki wasn’t trying to belittle her, she wasn’t trying to make Sayo feel inadequate but simply telling someone that it would “come naturally” and “not to think about it” did more harm than good. Sayo wasn’t the type to understand everything in one go.

“I could always show you how I operate if it’ll help you.”

And so, the two found themselves walking under the sweltering heat, Misaki trying her hardest to stuff her face under her hat. It was getting warmer, but with it came the worst part of the summer: the humidity. Sayo felt like she was inhaling hot soup with every breath, and her arms became slick with sweat. If it got this bad at the beginning of June, she could only imagine how it was going to be in the coming months.

“Which dorm are you in?” Sayo asked. Luckily they were fairly close with the exception of the international students, but she was already looking forward to cooling down.

Misaki took a glance at her nervously. “Er,” she began, “When I meant _home_ , I meant… I don’t live on campus.”

“I see. I have heard a lot of students live nearby.”

“Yeah. It’s not too far though, so we’ll be able to cool off once we get there.” Misaki gave her a knowing smile, and the two headed off.

When she said it wasn’t too far, she was actually right - they stopped at an apartment complex that was just a five minute walk from the university. It was the only apartment complex wedged in between the normal houses flanking the narrow road that Sayo was familiar with, but it had a small parking lot right next to it to fit at least four vehicles and a bike rack right outside. It didn’t look all that bad either, like it was newly built. For just an apartment complex it had a lot of space dedicated to it, and the apartments themselves looked larger than at least three of the dorm rooms.

“Well, this is it,” Misaki casually said, leading Sayo into the stairway. There were at least four other apartments in the building, with Misaki’s facing the road. With a twist of her key, the door opened and Sayo followed her in.

The cool air touching her skin instantly made her relax, and she took off her shoes after Misaki with a small “pardon the intrusion”. It was a simple single-person apartment, but Sayo couldn’t help but stare at the amount of modern- _modern_ equipment in the kitchen. The stove looked brand new, the microwave was sleek and shiny, even the small oven had a million other buttons that Sayo didn’t want to think about. And the refrigerator was a sleek and shiny silver.

She didn’t even want to think about the bathroom as they walked by the door, so she followed Misaki into the main room which was clean and tidy, with the exception of the L-shaped desk in the corner with a large computer monitor on it that had a bunch of sticky notes stuck to it. Sayo spotted a small, toy-like keyboard sitting in front of it, with a cord that ran behind the desk and into a fairly large computer. A small white box with buttons all over it sat right next to the keyboard.

“Ah, welcome,” Misaki said, setting her backpack on the ground. “You can take a seat on the couch and I’ll get us something to drink. Anything special you want?”

“Anything is fine with me, thank you.”

Misaki came back with two fairly large water bottles which were opened and hurriedly chugged by them both before she gestured to the monitor. “That’s where I make most of my music, the laptop is for stuff I show the professors.” She woke up the PC by shaking the mouse sitting off to the side, revealing a desktop jam packed with shortcuts and folders that would have made Sayo sick if she stared too long.

“Now here’s the music software I use. It’s nothing much, just a more updated version of the one the school gives us. What really helps me get sounds going are these,” she picked up the keyboard and pointed at the white thing next to it. “These are called midi boards. You can play around with sounds easier by just tapping the buttons, and it gives you a better feel of what you’re working with.” To demonstrate, she loaded a kit and began to press a few of the keys on the keyboard, resulting in a series of synthetic sounds.

Sayo hummed. So it was a more complicated process than she thought. She watched with interest as Misaki dragged new notes and clicked on the various sounds and settings the program had within it. She spoke politely and slow enough for Sayo to keep up, never speaking in jargon - and if she did it was quickly corrected.

“Technology is certainly amazing, isn’t it?” she asked after an hour of listening to Misaki show her the ropes. Music theory had a lot to do with it, something Sayo didn’t even consider: bars, harmonies, scales and octaves… they hadn’t even gone over any of that in her lectures. Maybe Misaki had been an active music club member in high school.

“Haha, it’s definitely its own beast, but I wouldn’t have gotten so far without help. I couldn’t imagine making even this simple melody without these with me.” She tapped a few keys on her mini board,  “I’d be spending days just listening to each sound and would never get anywhere.”

Sayo’s curiosity got the best of her. “What are those, exactly? I notice you have one of those on your DJ equipment as well.” Just looking at a large board of pure buttons without any kind of labeling was a little intimidating.

“This thing is called a midi fighter. Uh, the most simple version is: you load the sounds from the software onto the buttons you want and you'll trigger that sound when you push it. Some people just use this as their main instrument and don’t even bother with the turntables or knobs.” Sayo nodded. Digital creation was indeed a whole new beast she wasn’t sure she wanted to tackle just yet.

“But anyway, with all this aside, the most important thing is to think about what you want to make. Is it exciting or a little sad? Do you want to try and tell a story? From there you can really narrow down the types of sounds you’ll be arranging, and eventually you’ll find yourself toying with lots of bars on the screen and a clear vision of where you’re going.”

“I see…” she hadn’t thought of it that way. She had simply assumed Misaki meant she just needed to go all in without a plan and it would simply work. It made more sense now. “Thank you, Okusawa-san. Your advice has been incredibly helpful. I will put what you’ve taught to use.”

Misaki rolled her neck and let out a small laugh, though it didn’t sound very friendly. “Not at all. Really, anybody could do this stuff, it’s not like I’m doing anything particularly special.”

Sayo wanted to counter with a very strong _yes_ she was, but the words were lodged in her throat. “We will simply have to agree to disagree,” she said as she stood, checking the time on her phone. It wasn’t extremely late, but she had some research and practice to do, and she didn’t want to bother Misaki too much by staying longer. “Before I go, may I use your restroom?”

“Sure. I’m sure you saw it but it’s the door right next to the fridge,” Misaki said as she pointed to the small hallway leading to the kitchen. Sayo politely excused herself and headed in.

She blinked as soon as she walked in. Not only were the toilet and shower in the same room; the toilet, shower _and_ a whole tub were in the same room. It felt like it could have been an entire living room on its own. And it wasn’t like a typical bathroom either - the walls were a fancy granite, the showerhead was a shiny silver like the fridge, and the tub looked like a Jacuzzi.

Shaking herself out of the surprise with a blush, Sayo hurriedly finished her business and washed her hands, leaving the bathroom with a small sense of inadequacy. How could she sit in the dorm’s bathtub again knowing Okusawa Misaki had a whole luxury bath at home?

“Thank you again,” she said at the door. Misaki hummed in response as she leaned against the frame, giving her a small smile. “Should I run into trouble again, would it be alright to ask for assistance?”

“Anytime, Hikawa-san. Really, I’m always here so if you feel like dropping by that’s fine too. I don’t really have much to do.”

Sayo nodded, making sure she would take advantage of that at least once more. “Of course. Ah, but one more thing. I do think you would be a very reliable asset to our band. Don’t hesitate to join us on days we’re in the studio.”

Misaki tilted her head with another one of her small laughs, stuffing her hands into her pockets with her eyes glued to the ground. “I’ll see about that. Maybe just once.”

“That would be more than enough.” Sayo gave her a small bow and gave one last wave before heading down the steps to return to campus. Her cool skin shuddered as it began to warm up, and Sayo regretted leaving her water bottle on Misaki’s desk.

Misaki might not have considered her help very important, but Sayo could tell the knowledge she had just absorbed was an asset to everything she was having trouble with. She was looking forward to picking up her guitar tonight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my it took this long to write this hhhh I'm sorry.
> 
> It is almost Time™. I'd say in about 2-3 chapters Tsugumi will finally appear.


	17. Chapter 17

Of all things Sayo expected upon walking into the clubroom, the one thing she didn’t was Maya immediately running up to her with a flyer in her hand and stars in her eyes so bright Sayo had to look away in fear of going blind. 

“Yamato-san, what is-”

“This is great, Sayo-san!” Maya shouted, jumping back and forth like a boxer in her excitement. She held out the flyer for Sayo to finally get a look and she raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t even a flyer - but a small menu for a restaurant she couldn’t recognize. “Do you know what this means?!”

For a moment, Sayo stared at Maya’s excited face, trying her best to match her enthusiasm but couldn’t quite get there. Instead, she focused her gaze on Yukina, who was busy looking at something on the table towards the back of the club room. “Um,” she said, giving Maya another glance. “No, I don’t. Minato-san, what does… er, this mean?”

Yukina looked up with a small whisper before she noted something down and leaned back in her seat. “Sayo. I’ve been meaning to speak with you,” she said. Sayo set her guitar against the wall and let out a breath as she took a seat across from her. They had seen each other at practice all week yet Yukina never seemed to be in a hurry to speak with her. Maya was still in the background, talking to herself excitedly so it must have been something good, right?

As she was thinking, Yukina took a page off the table and slid it across for Sayo to get a look at it. “We’ve been operating as a club, technically, for a few months already. Lisa and I have been thinking it’s time for us to perform at events.”

“Yeah! Our sessions have been going pretty well, and I can feel myself improving!” Maya said from her spot at the door. Sayo nodded in agreement. She could tell her muscle memory was improving, and she was keeping up with Yukina’s singing, never letting herself fall behind for a second. If she did, she made sure to make up for it when she was in her dorm room. 

But was she confident enough to display that in front of an audience? It was one thing to perform with her bandmates and listen to their critiques to get better as they were also striving to better their technique… it was another to believe they were good enough to play for other people.

“The school has some locations the club performed at in the past so it would be easier for us to book a show. I wanted your opinion,” she explained, tapping the tip of her nail on the page. They were mostly places Sayo had no knowledge of, but with a quick search she was able to see what they were like. Mostly bars, though it seemed if they didn’t drink anything it didn’t matter, there was one restaurant that had the same name as the menu Maya was holding, and a small live house where bands performed. 

Sayo immediately wanted to blurt it as her first choice, but with a quick glance at Yukina, whose gaze was as cool as ever, she somehow felt obligated to choose something less extravagant. After all, a place like that was meant for bands actually prepared for it, and Sayo didn’t believe she was prepared to even let Misaki listen to her playing.

Clearing her throat, she slid her palms across the paper. “Perhaps we should start with something small. The campus here has a stage we may use, and it would likely yield better results starting somewhere we are comfortable.”

Yukina crossed her arms. “I agree. We have improved, yes, but I don’t believe we are ready to stand on stage just yet.” They could hear Maya sigh from the door, but she still looked at them with a smile on her face.

“I’m ready to perform anywhere, really! It would be nice to perform at a live house, though…”

Yukina nodded, taking the sheet from Sayo’s side of the table, looking at the calendar on her phone. “Then, we will aim for the summer festival in July. That gives us just a little over a month to prepare an original song.”

“An original song, huh…” Maya repeated, adjusting her glasses. A pause, and then Sayo flinched as she sat straighter in her seat with a loud: “Huh?!” 

Again, Yukina didn’t so much as blink. “Of course. Covers can only get you so far; it’s what you can create on your own that will keep people coming back to listen.” The chair scraped against the floor as she stood with a sigh. “I will leave the booking to you, Yamato-san.”

“A-ah… yeah! Sure!”

Sayo was about to speak up when Yukina turned her head as she slung her bag over her shoulder. “Sayo, I want you to meet me in the studio regarding these plans. I’ll give you the time later, don’t be late.”

“Of course.”

She left without another word, letting both Sayo and Maya take a moment to finally breathe.

“Haa…” Maya sighed, letting her arms drop on both sides of her chair. Sayo felt a similar sigh escape her but she managed to swallow it in time, not wanting to express the same uncomfort with Yukina around. “Minato-san is really something, but… it’s like she’s-”

“A professional…” Sayo murmured.

“Exactly! I’m not sure how to handle it sometimes, ehehe… N-not that I have a problem with her or anything! It’s just…” Maya scratched at her cheek with a nervous chuckle and tilted her head. “There are times I wonder if I should treat her like a teacher, or if I should act normal.”

Sayo felt the same way. Though she and Yukina seemed to have at started getting along through practice and their private guitar lessons, she could still feel herself stiffen and become uncomfortable with every look Yukina gave her. 

She sighed. “With time, we’ll get used to it. She’s already doing enough to help us, we should only do the right thing and repay her by striving to play our best.” Yukina was a tough person on the outside, but if she was friends with Lisa there was bound to be some softness underneath it all. Sayo at least wanted to be able to confirm that. “I will head down to the studio and practice for a while.”

“Go ahead! I’ll research the summer festival and get us booked for the live show!” Maya saluted as Sayo reached for her guitar, immediately shuffling through whatever paperwork Yukina had left on the table for her. 

* * *

The trek to the studio was quiet, as the fashion students seemed to finally understand where they were supposed to be and no longer needed to be running around the lobby. There really was nothing better than a calm walk where she didn’t feel rushed. It felt nice, she realized, being comfortable enough with her environment.

A small buzz in her pocket and a familiar tone stopped her right as she got to the bottom of the stairs. Sayo took a moment to look around before sitting and accepting the incoming call. “Tsugumi,” was all she said.

Despite the fact their calls were becoming less frequent as Sayo busied herself, Tsugumi replied with the same warmth she always did. “Sayo! Hi!” 

Just hearing her made Sayo relax, and she leaned back in the seat with a sigh. “Hi,” was her simple reply. 

“I’m sorry, are you busy?” Sayo’s lips twitched at the immediate question. Tsugumi asked every single time, and every single time Sayo would reassure her that calling at any time of the day was perfectly fine. Except during the days when she was in class or practicing, but she had given Tsugumi a rough schedule for her to follow.    


This time, however, Sayo could feel the teasing smirk on her face. “I am, actually. Minato-san and I have plans to meet in the studio.” She crossed her legs and looked at the stairs, watching for any light coming from someone opening the door at the top. For a second she could hear the concerned sound Tsugumi often made when she was surprised, and in that second she wanted to apologize and immediately explain the joke. 

“Oh! Um… then I should probably leave you to it…?” Tsugumi asked nervously. Sayo closed her eyes and counted down from ten, keeping her breathing steady and thoughts clear so she wouldn’t break. 

“Yes. Things are certainly getting busy around here,” she said, wondering what kind of expression Tsugumi was wearing. “There is a summer festival coming up and Minato-san wants us to have our first performance at that time, so we’ll likely spend a lot of our free time in the studio.”

Tsugumi let out a little gasp. “That’s wonderful! When is it?”

“Sometime next month…” There was a brief pause as they both deflated at the thought.

“I’ll… just have to see you play some other time!” Tsugumi finished with a hopeful breath. Sayo could clearly hear the smile in her voice. She truly wore her heart on her sleeve, didn’t she? “Ah! But I shouldn’t distract you from practice! Good luck!”

“Ah, about being busy… I was just kidding. I apologize, it wasn’t a very good joke, was it?” Despite feeling slightly ashamed of making Tsugumi feel like a bother, she let out a small laugh. It took a moment to hear it, but the small hitches of breath as Tsugumi laughed came through the receiver, and Sayo relaxed her shoulders. Sayo wasn’t one to laugh very much, but she was glad she was able to get her feelings across. 

For a moment, they sat in comfortable silence while Tsugumi caught her breath. There was something therapeutic, Sayo thought, about speaking with her. She didn’t expect Sayo to always be paying attention nor did she expect to always have something to talk about. Moments where they could simply hear the other breathing was enough.

The moment didn’t last, however. As soon, a nervous “Um…” reached her ear, the pang in her stomach could have brought Sayo to her knees. It wasn’t like Tsugumi was speaking any differently, but for some reason she could just feel it - something was off. 

“Tsugumi?”

“Um! I… I had a question. It’s okay if you don’t want to! Just, it’s something - something I’ve been thinking a lot about for a while and I want to be honest...” Tsugumi rambled. It was quite cute, though Sayo was so preoccupied with her thoughts, wondering what was going on that she couldn’t dwell on the cuteness for too long. 

At the very least, it didn’t sound like Tsugumi was breaking up with her. 

“I wanted to tell the rest of my friends about us… Himari-chan already knows, so I thought… maybe?” she nervously asked. Sayo could feel her eyes widen, this time in a much more dramatic fashion than just a few moments ago. A ball of sand suddenly clogged her throat. 

But Tsugumi didn’t wait for her to respond, or heard her breath get caught. “It’s just! We’ve been going out for a while, and after talking with Himari-chan I really think at least Ran-chan and the others should know. I’ve been worrying them…”

Her tone was so nervous, like she was… scared of Sayo’s opinion? She could clearly hear Tsugumi’s voice shake with every syllable, slowly losing steam as she continued to ramble. Sayo bit her lip, tightening her hold on her cell phone. 

“Of course,” she said in a single breath. The wrinkle on her brow remained as she stared at her knees, quivering just a little. It wasn’t out of fear, she didn’t mind if the people who could basically be Tsugumi’s second family were aware. It was just… rather embarrassing. “Please don’t feel afraid to tell anyone, Tsugumi,” she added after another second of thought. 

“Are you sure…?”

Sayo nodded, drumming her fingertips on the seat while she waited for Tsugumi to continue. She then realized Tsugumi couldn’t see her and let out a small sigh of embarrassment. “I’m sure. It’s not my intention to keep you isolated from your friends, nor do I want you to think that’s the case. Please feel free to tell anyone, and I…”

She glanced at the stairs, and at the door leading into the studio. Not a soul had come by so far. “I… will try, to tell my own circle about us.”

Tsugumi giggled. “That would be nice! I’d be really nervous if they didn’t and I showed up…”

The dark cloud that had been lingering over Sayo’s head disappeared, leaving her feeling warm inside. The fact that Tsugumi cherished their relationship and thought hard about revealing it to her closest friends was one of the greatest honors. Himari seemed nice enough, and anyone who could befriend Tsugumi couldn’t possibly have been a bad person. 

“Oho. So this means we’re o-k, Ran~”

“M-Moca-chan!? I mean! Mo-ha-ahaha! I guess I’m coming up with a cold…!”

The panicked tone followed by the sounds of what sounded like the phone being tossed around made Sayo jump in her seat. “Tsugumi…?” she said, her own panic setting in at the thought of anyone listening in on their conversation.

Something seemed to swipe across the speaker again, before it cleared and a much deeper, much more cool voice chimed in. 

“We’re glad you weren’t forcing her to stay quiet at least. Just so you know, she’s been acting depressed for a while and we wanted to know what the reason was.”

Tsugumi? Depressed? She seemed to always be upbeat and positive during their phone calls, and not once did she mention such thoughts to Sayo… She felt her hand tighten around her phone again while her teeth gnawed on her bottom lip. 

“A-anyway!” she recognized Himari’s voice, “We’re all here for you both!”

A rather loud mismatch of “yeah” followed, and Sayo couldn’t help but feel somewhat relieved. Clearing her throat and head of any negative thoughts, she pressed a palm into her thigh at the sound of someone’s footsteps coming from within the studio. 

“Let me talk to Tsugumi...san?” she asked, the honorific feeling off on her tongue despite it not being long since she had dropped it. “Off of speakerphone, if I may?”

Once the background noise seemed to quiet down, she waited for Tsugumi to answer again. “Sayo?”

“Tsugumi. I’m looking forward to seeing you soon.”

If Tsugumi was feeling down, Sayo wanted to at least leave the conversation on a positive note. She could do that, right? 

A small gasp, followed by a loving. “Me too.”

“I must go now, Minato-san is likely waiting for me and I shouldn’t keep her long.” 

“Have fun! I know you can do it.”

Sayo took a glance at her watch and nodded, standing from the booth seat. Slinging her guitar case over her shoulder, she slowly tapped the red button on the screen and let out a long, tired breath while her other hand stayed limp at her side. She wasn’t very concerned with Tsugumi’s friends being in the know - but she was a little concerned with how they had been so concerned with Tsugumi that it became an actual problem. Had Sayo been too smothering? Did she make Tsugumi feel like she couldn’t talk to anyone but her? 

The door slowly opened, making Sayo take a step back to give the person coming out some space. The person who did managed to make Sayo take another few steps back. “Ahaha… sorry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop…?”

Sayo blanched, but she really did feel concern at this point, as she stared at Lisa’s apologetic yet very excited expression. Was it really possible to wear such clear emotions on one’s face? Imai Lisa happened to prove that it was. “I-Imai-san.”

It seemed she was paling at an alarming rate if Lisa’s curious smile disappeared. “It’s okay! I won’t tell a soul. I just never really expected you to sound so….  _ gentle _ .”

At that, Sayo blinked, returning to her usual self with a small dent in her pride. “Do I speak unkindly?”

“No! You actually speak way too formal for a normal college student-”

“So I’m not normal.”   


“Sa~yo~! That’s not what I mean!” Lisa laughed, shutting the door behind her. She guided Sayo back to the seats outside the studio and noticed how Sayo’s eyes glanced at the door in curiosity. “Ah, Yukina’s still out and about, I was just doing some of my own practice. So let’s talk!”

If Sayo had the strength to slap her hands into her face to hide her blush she would have, but at the mercy of one Imai Lisa, she was sure nothing would be able to protect her. “Talk about…?”

Lisa’s starry gaze was all she needed as an answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Sayo's turn to gush about how much she loves Tsugu to someone other than Tsugu.


	18. Chapter 18

The way Lisa was staring at her, expectant and excited and all kinds of giddy made Sayo’s stomach turn. She was, at this point, caught red handed. There was nowhere to run, nobody to see considering Yukina was taking her sweet time doing something else, and of all people to make herself vulnerable to, it was Imai Lisa. 

After a momentary pause, and Sayo scooting just a few inches away to somehow feel a little safer, Lisa rested her chin in her palms and moved her gaze from her to the wall. 

First things first: “How much, exactly, did you hear?” 

Lisa hummed, almost as if she had already anticipated the question. Then, sitting up with a grin and making Sayo flinch in fear, Lisa only had the guiltiest grin on her face. “How did it go again…?  _ ‘It’s not my intention to keep you isolated from your friends’  _ I think? And from there, ahaha~ something in me just said to stay put. Sorry Sayo!”

She clapped her hands before her face and lowered her shoulders, making Sayo look away in awkward silence. “Um,” she managed. While she was a little annoyed, and a part of her felt exposed and vulnerable, Sayo was somewhat glad. “I’ll start by asking you to keep this between us.”

“Sure thing!” was Lisa’s immediate response, but it wasn’t like Sayo expected anything less. She seemed wild and without a filter, but after watching her careful interactions with Yukina and how tight lipped she was about their relationship, a small voice inside Sayo’s head told her it was enough to trust Lisa. 

Taking a breath, Sayo crossed her legs, trying to regain a bit of composure. “Second, you said you wanted to talk, but I’m… not quite familiar with things like this. Please let me know what you wanted to hear.”

“Well!” Lisa perked up immediately, but still kept her friendly, safe smile on her face. “I heard  _ Tsugumi-san _ , so… are you dating another girl?”

If she had asked a second earlier Sayo was sure to choke on her own saliva, and she managed to not completely burst into flames. Clearing her throat, she slowly nodded. Lisa didn’t react immediately, and if she already had the thought in mind before asking, that had to mean she didn’t care, right?

“Hm… I didn’t really expect you to be the type, but at the same time I’m not surprised!”

“Imai-san…” Sayo couldn’t help but look down at herself, wondering what was wrong with her appearance. Lisa bumped her shoulder with a small laugh, her voice echoing just a little in the small room. It was starting to feel like it was shrinking, bit by bit every second, but at the same time Sayo couldn’t help but feel more refreshed. “I suppose I’m relieved you aren’t opposed to it though.”

Lisa shook her head, fluffy hair bouncing every which way. “Are you kidding? I’m- um, I have a relative! That’s the same way, so it’s no big deal you know?”

They could just barely hear the distant footsteps of students wandering the floors above, but the silence was beginning to feel more comfortable as Sayo slowly processed that Lisa wasn’t trying to pry her way into Sayo’s life or know more than she needed. 

“What’s her name?”

“Hazawa Tsugumi, she’s currently a third year high school student...”

* * *

The first time she had seen her, Tsugumi was sitting at the kitchen table with Hina, doing whatever kinds of student council work Hina usually procrastinated on. At first, Sayo thought nothing of her. She was a sweet contrast to her sister’s rambunctious soul, but Sayo ultimately wanted nothing to do with Hina and things going on in her life and left them to their own devices while she locked herself in her room. 

It seemed Hina became attached to her too. She’d drag her to their home every few days to take care of their work, and Sayo would walk in to see the same cute, surprised face every time. Even though she could feel her chest well up with  _ something _ , and her stomach was set aflame with butterflies, she gave a courteous greeting before she fled to her room, heart hammering in her chest as loud as her door would slam shut. 

Tsugumi. Her name was as sweet on Sayo’s tongue as she had expected, but it was replaced with a bitter aftertaste as she imagined how much time Hina was spending with her. She had only just begun her guitar practice, and after those bitter thoughts manifested in her head Sayo would block out the outside world and invest the rest of her evening in her instrument. 

“Onee-chan!” Hina called from the kitchen one evening as Sayo was studying for her upcoming entrance exams. The mere sound of her voice made Sayo clench her pencil tightly, but when she saw Hina’s face slowly peering from the edge of her door frame slightly fearful, a small part of her wanted to at least hear what she had to say. 

“Yes?”

Raising her arms, Hina made the clear bag in her hands known. Sayo quickly recognized the contents as sugar cookies. “Tsugu-chan is the best! Look, look! She made cookies for the whole student council today but she gave me these to bring home!”

Seeing Hina’s bright smile as she ran into her room to indulge in her snacks, Sayo hadn’t even felt the fond smile form on her face until it melted back into her usual frown. Shaking her head, she continued studying, all the while listening to Hina’s feet kicking the wall and the occasional laugh filtering through it. In the end, she shut her textbook after reading the same two sentences for two more hours and wondered why she couldn’t focus on anything but the sound of Hina’s bag crinkling in her hand. 

For two months, she felt her hand burn as she turned the handle of their apartment, and her eyes lingered just a little too long as she greeted the cute, fidgety girl at the table. That soon came to an end as it seemed things at Hina’s school were slowing down, and Sayo was slightly grateful - but as she walked home, she missed feeling excited about seeing Tsugumi’s face. 

The moment she gathered her courage to approach Tsugumi was the moment Sayo felt her life change course. She gripped the strap of her school bag and cleared her throat, nervousness disappearing from her tongue in a puff of smoke. 

“Hazawa...san,” she called, hoping her voice was loud enough for the girl to hear. Luckily, she did. 

Like a classic romance film, Hazawa Tsugumi placed a hand on her hair to keep it in place as she turned, honey-colored eyes looking at her in confusion and surprise. “Hi-Hikawa-san!” she said, scurrying just a few feet closer. Cheeks red, she looked down at her feet. “Yes?”

Swallowing, Sayo suddenly felt her throat tighten, like it was collapsing in on itself. 

“I… noticed… H-Hina, I mean.” She cleared her throat to settle her thoughts. “Hina mentioned you know how to make sweets?”

Time seemed to stop as Tsugumi took a few steps closer, cheeks red and nervous voice saying things she couldn’t hear. 

She was a wonderful baker as well as teacher. Sayo’s gift turned out not as well as she had hoped, but it was a start. Not once did Tsugumi belittle her efforts or try and brush off her worries, it was like she was sharing half of Sayo’s burden without meaning to. In a single afternoon, Sayo could feel her heart feel warm. 

Their friendship took off from there, and Sayo couldn’t seem to stop thinking about Tsugumi. Every cup of coffee reminded her of the fresh scent of her family’s cafe, the sunflowers she would pass by on the way to school, on the opposite side of town, would remind her of Tsugumi’s friendly smile. 

And then, months later when Sayo’s stomach would churn, her head felt light and her legs wanted to give out, Tsugumi clutched the hem of her skirt. Standing underneath a tree at the park, leaves and twigs scattered at her feet, Tsugumi wouldn’t look at her. 

“I… I like you,” she said. Her voice was shaken, but it was loud. “I think - I think you’re one of the kindest people I’ve ever met. You’re… you’re always worried about me, always making me feel so special and…”

Sayo gulped. The words were making themselves clear. Whatever praise Tsugumi was giving her went in one ear and out the other, but the feeling in her chest as she watched Tsugumi’s ears go red and her hands tighten around her skirt was enough. 

Letting out a breath that got swept up in the autumn air, she gently took one of Tsugumi’s hands. Cringing just a little at how sweaty and shaken her fingers were, Sayo tightened her hold on Tsugumi’s soft hand, waiting until those cute brown eyes were pointed at her again. Giving Tsugumi a small smile, just enough for it to actually show on her face, she leaned down to share their first kiss. 

It was awkward, and Sayo was sure they were supposed to do more than stand there, but she pulled back when her lungs screamed for air. Tsugumi’s face was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen. 

Sayo always thought she was immune to those cheesy feelings, that nobody would ever be interested in her, and she would be interested in nothing but academics. She was proven wrong, time and time again. Slowly - or not so slowly, now that she thought about it, her feelings for Tsugumi intensified with every new piece of information.

* * *

Lisa blinked, staring long and hard at Sayo, whose eyes were focused on the wall ahead of her as her story lingered in the air. After a moment, she realized her jaw was wide open, and shut it with a loud snap. 

“W-wow… Sayo…” she said, cheeks slightly red. Sayo, keeping her legs and arms crossed, didn’t bother to look her way. But it was evident she was also steaming on the inside, as her ears began to grow red, as did her face. 

“She is a wonderful person,” Sayo said after another long pause. “I am grateful to have her in my life. However…”

Lisa nodded, leaning back with a vocal hum. “She’s got it worse than you? I’d imagine it’s tough on her, having to deal with the distance and all.” Sayo nodded, the wrinkles on her brow growing. “Is she gonna visit you soon?”

Suddenly, those wrinkles disappeared. “Yes. Only for a short while, but she will be visiting in August. I’ve been somewhat busy preparing for it, though now it seems my time will be even more limited.” She looked up to the ceiling with a sigh, and Lisa bumped her shoulder again, this time leaning against her with a soft smile. 

“I didn’t think you were the type to be such a romantic~ It’s kind of surprising.”

“I wouldn’t call myself that,” Sayo said, flushing just a little. “And I’ve likely made a few mistakes along the way. I feel I may be causing her to think she can’t enjoy her time away from me…”

Lisa hummed, still leaning against her. It was slightly embarrassing to think someone might see them and get the wrong idea, but it was a reassuring touch that somewhat kept Sayo from letting her mind wander to darker places. 

Then, Lisa shrugged with a loud sigh, giving Sayo’s thigh a strong pat. “Look, I might not know her, but from what you told me she seems really sweet!” her smile was as bright as Sayo’s reddening ears. “I think you might need to talk with her a little more about it, you know - when she gets here. But you both seem to really care about each other, at least, from the way you looked when you talked about her.”

“Is it really that easy?” Sayo asked, watching as Lisa crossed her legs with a confident nod. “We do communicate fairly well, I think. But… this is something she’s not telling me…”

“Then say that! If it’s bugging you, you’ve got to tell her. And if something is bugging her, try and let her feel like she can trust you enough to talk about it!”

Sayo’s eyes widened just a little, watching Lisa give her so many friendly smiles and touches to ground her. She sounded like an expert, like she was used to giving advice. “Thank you, Imai-san. When you say it like that, it does sound easier… and less stressful to think about.”

“Good! Now, if you really wanna sweep her off her fee-”

“Lisa. Sayo.”

A small gasp escaped Lisa’s lips as she was interrupted, and they both looked to the stairs where Yukina, a guitar case strapped to her back, reached the bottom with a curious stare at them. Sayo tried to not move her head much as she glanced at the girl beside her, observing as her green eyes lit up, followed by her confused frown turning completely upside down. She could see Yukina scanning them both, as if trying to read the mood until she seemingly gave up, taking a few steps until she was standing before them. 

“Hello, Minato-san,” was Sayo’s cool greeting. Yukina merely nodded, but Sayo could only focus on the neck of the guitar looming over her shoulder, not minding the awkward conversation. 

“Yukina!” Lisa shouted, jumping to her feet. Yukina looked surprise as Lisa’s arms wrapped around her shoulders, giving her a tight hug. Eventually, it seemed she melted into it, closing her eyes for a brief moment before they snapped open again, slicing through the air until they reached Sayo. In return, Sayo turned her head to focus on the wall. “Geez, we’ve been waiting forever! What took you?”

“I just ran a few errands,” was all she said. Lisa seemed happy enough with the answer and let Yukina go, stepping aside to grab her bag. “Sayo, let’s get going.”

“Of course.” Sayo stood, grabbing her guitar and slinging it over her shoulder, following Yukina’s lead. “Imai-san, I appreciate the talk. Thank you.” She couldn’t help but wear a soft smile, truly feeling like a burden had just lifted. 

Lisa nodded, giving her a wink, though her eyes continued to glue themselves to Yukina. “Have fun you two~ Try not to wear her out, okay Yukina? I need her if I’m gonna survive more shifts at work.”

A humorous smirk was sent her way in response. Yukina said nothing as she opened the door, allowing Sayo to walk in first. Lisa stayed behind a second longer before she was heading up the stairs, leaving them alone in the quiet hallway. 

_ A  _ relative _ , huh. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One month later I am BACK. I hope you enjoyed Sayo's side of the story, and that faint YukiLisa~


	19. Chapter 19

One month to complete a song. It sounded like time was on their side, but as soon as a week and a half passed by without a single thought and Sayo still couldn’t get a hold of her faults, she realized one month really wasn’t all that long. She received a good amount of help from Yukina, who made her points as clear and concise as possible, not wanting to waste any time. As they sat across from each other, guitars in hand, Sayo almost felt like there was one hundred miles between them instead of ten inches.

“Loosen your fingers,” she said quickly as Sayo strummed after her example. Sayo looked down at the fret and nodded, strumming the strings one more time. What sounded choppy and out of focus cleared, running smooth out of the amp at their feet. Yukina, satisfied, nodded. “You might think you need to crush the strings to get it right, but that’s worsening the sound and making you slow. Do it again.”

Letting out a quiet breath, Sayo did it one more time. They had a well-used guitar workbook open between them, displaying charts of simple chords Yukina was having her follow. Though Sayo thought they were simple enough, she quickly learned she hadn’t actually taken the time to study any of it, blazing through them like she was an expert.

Minato Yukina made sure to make an example out of her arrogance.

Thirty minutes and three more chords later, Sayo’s fingers were beginning to stiffen. Yukina seemed to notice how difficult it was for Sayo to keep up the pace and shut the workbook, putting an end to the day. “That’s enough for today. We’ll continue tomorrow. I don’t want you picking it up again until then either.”

Sayo stared at the shut workbook, wanting to express her disappointment, but nodded anyway. “Thank you for the help, Minato-san.”

A flick of her hair, almost like a standard at this point. “I’m mostly showing you what you’ve been doing wrong. I’m surprised you managed to come this far,” she blinked as Sayo’s expression dropped, “But you’re getting better. Good work.”

She slipped her guitar back into its case and let it rest against the wall as there were no stands available. Slinging a backpack over her shoulder, she gave Sayo one final nod and, as always, left without another word.

Sayo deflated instantly, feeling all the strength in her arms disappear completely. Yukina’s training was tough, but even she could feel the difference in how she picked up her guitar and strummed. It made the few years she was practicing alone worthless, but in just a few sessions, Sayo was able to memorize more chords than she had after two years. She stared at her fingertips, getting rougher with each session, getting stronger and more used to the surface of her fretboard.

She stood, setting her guitar down on her stand. The studio wasn’t the hottest place on campus - it was actually cooled regularly, but for some reason the air felt stuffy and thick, and Sayo patted her forehead with a rag as she picked up her backpack. Cords and papers were scattered all over the place thanks to the strong air blowing through the vents, so she took a moment to clean up a little, even if she would be back the next day.

One of the sheets she picked up was a copy of Yukina’s lyrics. She had returned with them completely done within a matter of days, though it was obvious by the bags under her eyes she compromised a little to get them done. Still, it never showed, and still she took the time to teach Sayo how to actually play her guitar.

Slowly, she began reading them, memorizing each word and engraving them into her heart, trying to understand what Yukina was trying to say. As she made her way up the stairs and back into the outside world, all she could hear was Yukina’s voice.

She blinked, and realized she had made her way to the front of campus where a few students were hanging out underneath trees, fanning themselves with their school supplies. Sayo didn’t have any energy or plans to go anywhere, but she also didn’t want to lock herself in her room where she’d die of heat stroke either.

With a shrug, she ended up making her way across campus despite the heat, and headed into the library. The least she could do was work on some classwork instead of putting it off, especially when exams were approaching as the semester was coming to an end. And the facility was air conditioned, cooling her body down as soon as the doors slid open.

She showed her student ID and was allowed right in, looking around at the many tables and computers spread across the first floor. Sayo wasn’t the only one who came to cram, either - almost every seat was occupied, leaving her with no choice but to head upstairs.

The second floor was the actual library. The shelves were against the walls while cubicles and empty desks littered the whole floor, with just a small desk for checking out books off in the corner. Sayo set off to the only empty table she could find, dumping her bag and book onto it without a second thought. She learned being noisy wasn’t as looked down on there as it would have been anywhere else, and it was a nice feeling.

“Sa~yo~” someone whispered beside her before a familiar style of hair appeared in the corner of her eye. Sayo had just finished a unit of studying and bookwork, so she blinked hard a few times until her vision cleared, revealing a smiling Lisa across from her. “What are you doing here?” she asked, hurriedly sliding a book of her own from her purse.

“Making sure I don’t fail the semester,” she answered, spreading her hands over the top of her work. She had a few charts in her notebook, some things were highlighted, but it was simple enough for her to read over and understand later. Nothing irrelevant was included, if maybe a few stray lines when her pen was running dry. “I’ve unfortunately fallen in line with Okusawa-san’s habits,” she sighed, crossing her arms. Lisa gave her an understanding look, one that was too vague to tell if it was sympathetic or not. “And you?”

“Same as you~ Not that I’ve been _skipping_ , I just haven’t gotten the hang of English at all. It kills me!”

Sayo hummed, turning the page to read another paragraph on the development of economic anthropology. However, after a few sighs she looked up again and noticed Lisa hadn’t progressed at all with setting up her things, and was instead staring right at her.

“Yes?”

Quirking an eyebrow, Lisa rested her chin in her palm and whispered, “Have you talked to her yet?”

Sayo sputtered, looking around as her cheeks turned red, glaring once she noticed Lisa’s quiet snickering. “No, I have not. I’m not waiting until the last minute, it’s just difficult to bring up.”

“Hn… true, you can’t just say “hey tell me what’s bugging you”, it might just scare her off…”

“Th-that too… rather than scaring her, I don’t want to make her assume I think she doesn’t trust me.”

Lisa tapped on her notebook with her pen, clearly more interested in Sayo’s personal life than she was actually studying. Not that Sayo really minded. Besides the ongoing guitar issues, she was also burdened with her current situation regarding Tsugumi. Lisa was right in that simply talking to her was the best - if not the only thing she could do.

But how would Tsugumi see that? Would she think Sayo didn’t trust her enough, that she couldn’t keep things to herself without Sayo making her say everything? Even Sayo had things she didn’t want Tsugumi to know - it was completely hypocritical of her to demand it.

“You might also be overthinking it, too. When there are things I know are bothering Yukina, I gently pry it out of her~” Lisa’s smile and glimmer in her eyes were clear indicators that she wasn’t lying, and it put Sayo at ease, just a little. She continued writing her notes, mumbling a few things to herself as she did so. “I’m going out on a limb here to say Tsugumi-chan might even be waiting for you to point it out!”

Sayo stopped in the middle of underlining something on her notebook and looked up at her again. “Waiting for me?”

Lisa nodded, completely shoving her book and bag aside to lean closer. “Yeah! Maybe she hasn’t said anything because she wants to see if you’re paying attention!”

Her voice was increasing in volume, and Sayo had to point to the three people who turned their heads or looked over their cubicle to stare at them. Blushing, Lisa leaned back with a confident nod, immediately focusing on the main topic.

Sayo flatted her hands on her textbook, reading the air and knowing Lisa was not going to let up or let her study until the conversation was over. If they even got there, that was. “Are you suggesting Tsugumi… san is testing me?”

That would be completely out of her character, she wasn’t the type to try and pull an impossible task like that. Testing Sayo? It was so insane a suggestion Sayo had trouble even imagining it.

“She might be! I do agree it might be a little too out there for someone like her, but it's not unheard of?”

Sayo hummed, crossing her arms. The library probably wasn’t the best place to be discussing relationship problems, but they were speaking quietly enough that nobody would bother listening in anyway. Sighing, she shook her head. “I don’t know, Imai-san. Thank you for the thought, but I’d rather not approach her thinking she might be manipulating me. Tsugumi-san is not that kind of person.”

Lisa pouted as she returned to her work. If Sayo could concentrate for the next hour or two, she would be caught up and just need to study a little more every day until exams began. But it seemed that plan would need to be on hold, as she could just feel Lisa’s eyes on her every movement. Eventually, Sayo realized she was still reading the same line over and over again and dropped her pen, giving up.

“Imai-san.”

“Sayo…”

Sayo sighed again, inserting a bookmark into her textbook and shutting it before stuffing it back into her backpack. “Let us go then.”

For a moment Lisa looked surprised, green eyes widening until Sayo pulled her phone out of her pocket and showed it to her, silently telling what was on her mind. Lighting up, Lisa happily grabbed her things and followed suit, both of them hurrying down the stairs and exiting the building.

“The dorm walls are too thin, classes are in session right now… hm,” Lisa muttered to herself as she followed Sayo down the narrow paths that led to the outskirts of campus. The trees grew denser and the cement soon turned into pure dirt, pebbles and grain getting crushed under her feet. She simply thought they would go a few buildings away, or near the field, but not the forest behind campus - Lisa didn’t even know they had that there! “Um, Sayo…?”

Silence. Lisa felt worry creep up her back. “Sayo?”

As soon as they emerged from the thick thrush around them, she saw a few empty benches on a dirt path that led somewhere further up, but Sayo stopped then. She pointed at one of the benches, and they took a seat at the same time.

“Sheesh, at least say something!” Lisa cried, lightly hitting her shoulder. “I thought you were going to kill me!”

Tapping on her phone, Sayo gave Lisa a nonchalant glance. “If it came to that, you’re the more athletic one of us both and would find an opening to escape.”

“You seem… strangely calm,” Lisa pointed out with a huff, resting the palms of her hands on either side of her. The benches had a thin layer of dirt on them that was highly likely to transfer onto her clothes, but Lisa was more preoccupied with how little Sayo seemed to be reacting to the idea of calling her girlfriend.

Sayo shook her head. “I’m actually quite terrified. Tsugumi-san is no stranger to me, and she’s very kind, but…”

Softly, Lisa placed her hand on Sayo’s left, squeezing it with a friendly smile. “You can do it! I’m here for you, Sayo!”

With a breath of confidence, Sayo nodded and hit the dial button. Singing along with the tone, the cicada around them screamed and buzzed, making the atmosphere feel more tense with each long ring. Sayo could feel Lisa’s hand still on hers, and she nodded at the comfort it gave her, gulping as soon as the tone stopped - replaced by a cute, nervous voice.

“Hello?”

It was a Friday afternoon, Tsugumi likely had just returned home from school. Perfect timing, Sayo thought as she gripped her phone tightly. “Tsugumi...san, hello,” she said awkwardly, feeling just how tight her jaw was. Lisa snickered beside her, but she didn’t have the patience or confidence to focus on her at the moment.

“Hi! Um, is something the matter?” Tsugumi sounded normal, the one who _didn’t_ was Sayo, and she hated it. The fact she added the honorific was a clear sign something was up - or someone was near her, she likely had just blown her cover.

“Nothing in particular. I just… have been thinking about certain things,” she said, knowing her heart was pounding hard against her chest. Lisa gave her another squeeze, and it allowed her to take a new breath of fresh air.

Tsugumi hummed, the tone sounding like what Sayo said was entering dangerous territory. “What kinds of... things?” Sayo grit her teeth, this was the last thing she wanted - for Tsugumi to sound scared and cornered, but she had to coax her out of it.

“Nothing scary, please don’t worry. I have been worried... I suppose that would be the closest word to it. If there is anything bothering you, or something you are having issues with, I am here to listen.”

A few shuffles, then the click of a door being shut, and then Tsugumi’s breath coming out of the receiver made Sayo’s palms begin to sweat. “You’ve been… worried about me?” Sayo could hear the smile in her voice, and couldn’t help but relax with a goofy one of her own.

“Yes. I’m sorry, this might be coming out of the blue, I realize.”

“No, don’t worry! It… makes me happy. There have been a few things, if you want to hear them?” she asked. Sayo wanted to reach into the phone and pull Tsugumi into her lap, but that was an impossible dream. Instead, she closed her eyes and imagined it.

Lisa’s hand slowly moved away from hers, but she remained seated beside her. A tap on her thigh distracted her, and Lisa pointed to her palm, indicating she wanted to hear as well.

“Um - before that, I - my friend, her name is Imai Lisa, she’s here with me. She is someone I trust, and if you’ll be okay with it, may I put you on speaker phone?” Sayo asked, feeling her composure crumble all around her.

Instead, Lisa was the one who took the reigns, knowing full well Sayo was losing steam. “Hi! I’m Imai Lisa, I play bass and hang out with Sayo for the music club! Sorry for butting in like this, Sayo seems to think and talk about you a lot and I got curious~”

Tsugumi sputtered on the other end, then went quiet for a second or two before uttering a soft:

 “Go ahead.”


End file.
